Autumn 1475682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2WOOdlZTSt
Richard was tired. It had been a long, tedious journey home from France, and he couldn’t help but feel that the whole thing had been nothing but a waste of his time.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO9RRvWPITc
He was angry, certainly, but tried to push away his distaste and think of brighter things, such as the wife and young baby waiting for him at home. It had been months since he had seen them, and although he had written to his wife frequently, he sorely missed the sound of her voice.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7HPE3iXPTO
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Anne had begged him not to go, to sit this one out. She had pleaded with him, but Richard had shook his head and told her that he would always follow his brother into battle.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi9dyxQMZIt
He scoffed beneath his riding helmet. The invasion of France had been a farce. Edward had backed out of battle at the earliest opportunity and settled for a treaty with the French king instead. Richard was furious. Parliament had raised funds for battle, and his brother wanted to sign a treaty and waste the battle funds on wine only a month after the war was waged?682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7qcewPUlJU
The French were threatened, they knew the English would win if it came to a pitched battle, so why did Edward retreat? Several thoughts - most of them insults - ran through Richard’s mind. Edward might be his brother, and he might be the king, but it didn’t stop him being bloody infuriating.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWu6YWTWWRX
As the long country road wore on, Richard began to recognise landmarks. The hill to his left, or the dip in the road up ahead signalled that he was back in the familiar North, and he was glad to be home. Anne would be waiting up at the castle, and he would wake in the morning in the comfort of his own bed, kept warm by the body of his wife lying beside him. It was far better than the cold bed in a foreign land he had endured in solitude since July.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK4GB3FPIDR
Most of his men had certainly not passed the months in solitude. Edward included had found comfort in the local prostitutes. His brother had laughed heartily when Richard declined a young woman’s offer, declaring that his younger brother was ‘altogether too chivalrous’ whilst taking the hand of another young lady himself. Richard had raised an eyebrow and turned back to his wine, thinking of Edward’s own wife Elizabeth, and how she was sure to disapprove.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFUuN0T3iIn
Turning back to the Yorkshire countryside, he finally caught sight of home. The castle in the distance called to him and a smile graced his features at last.
Middleham was beautiful in the autumn. The windows were lit with the gentle glow of a dozen candles, and the lawns had been meticulously pruned to prepare for his arrival.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5jQGQqyGeO
Taking a deep breath of the country air, he called his horse to a halt in the courtyard.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsxX7AslG6u
He had barely dismounted when a slender figure came rushing towards him, throwing herself into his arms.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDmXCktC0cq
“Oh Richard! I was beginning to worry, you were supposed to be home before nightfall and… and…” She motioned to the darkening sky. “There are all sorts of bandits and criminals on the roads at night and oh, I was so worried!” She said without taking a breath. Richard let out a small laugh.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQPXFBU9E2S
“Anne, Anne,” He said, placing his hands on her shoulders and steadying her. “I am here, aren’t I? Did I not promise I would come back to you?” He gazed into her dark eyes, and she blinked slowly before nodding.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSVrZonKLsx
“Yes, I suppose you did.” She sighed. “But anything could have happened! You could have been robbed, or attacked, or killed!!” She said frantically. “After all Richard, you are the king’s brother!” She added in a whisper.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK02BX6HWmm
Richard matched her tone with a smile on his face, and replied - also in a whisper -, “Anne, everyone knows I am the brother of the king. Why are we whispering?” He teased.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNuZurgVZxl
She paused for a moment before giving a small laugh and rolling her eyes at him. She took his arm and linked it through her own. He placed his hand on top of hers and allowed himself to be led inside.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI0zTrUBFDx
He hadn’t even had the chance to take off his armour yet.
Anne had dismissed their servants as soon as a hot bath had been prepared for her husband. He sank gratefully into the embrace of the water, allowing the heat to soothe his aching limbs. His back was giving him more pain than usual; he had spent too much time leaning over the reigns of a horse.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZF6eJgmA8W
Anne seemed to read his mind. Before his thoughts had even finished forming, her eyes were straying to his shoulders.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ70KcgSIH3K
“Does it hurt?” She asked. He could have lied. He could have told her that the bend in his spine and the uneven angle of his shoulders did not hurt even a little, but she knew him too well to believe his tales, and he respected her too much to try and fool her.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKy0Lmm4rVI
He said nothing, only nodded.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfl5hV5nDEo
“You pushed yourself too hard when you were in France. Edward should never have-” She began. Richard cut her off.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvzjxXSsyjH
“Edward… Edward does what he has to do.” He began angrily, but finished with a sigh. His fingers splashed in the water, and he looked at the droplets, considering his brother. “Edward does what he wants to do.” He corrected.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMU0wu3N7WO
Anne moved from her place on the window seat and knelt by the copper bathtub by the fire.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdswt3HDKiH
“What is troubling you, Richard?” She asked softly.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphI57aKUeI
He did not wish to burden her with his unease at the treaty, especially when he knew that the treaty and promise of peace was nothing less than a God send for Anne. She always worried herself into a frenzy when he was away on campaign.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLSfIFqx9yo
“My brother’s actions sit uncomfortably with me is all.” He said with a small shrug.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIRQena3m7y
Anne folded her arms on the edge of the tub and leaned her head on them, gazing into the water. Silence fell between them for a moment, and Richard found it comfortable. He felt no need to fill the silence with meaningless babble, and he found solace in Anne’s mere presence. He marvelled at how she was able to melt away his anger and his discontent without saying a word. Without even knowing the details of Richard's disaffection with his brother, Anne was able to calm his temper.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHo5C4nja5t
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He leaned his head back against the rim of the tub, but a twinge in his back prevented the position from being comfortable.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRuyHFBuHwI
Anne raised her head and saw the brief flicker of pain on her husband’s face. She stood and moved until she was behind his head. She knelt down again, and gently touched his shoulder. Richard allowed his eyes to slowly close. Anne massaged his shoulder with her delicate fingers, carefully undoing all the knots in his twisted spine, placing pressure in all of the right places.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpixiIx8Kxk
This, she knew, was when her husband was at his most vulnerable. He flinched a little when she first touched his oddly shapen back, but he allowed her to continue.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZY4nVOOSdM
Her hands were tender on the skin at the nape of his neck, and as the water began to cool she pressed a single kiss to his raised shoulder.
She stood silently, and paused at the door whilst Richard rose from the bathtub and began to dress in the clean clothes she had laid out for him.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡganZvZvbEd
“I am glad you’re home.” She said with a gentle smile as he pulled a white cotton shirt over his head, concealing the deformity of his spine.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡujsdFKGyQm
“So am I, Anne.” He replied. “So am I.”
A/N - Richard, duke of Gloucester (later Richard III after 1483) was reported by Shakespeare to have had a hunchback and a withered arm. DNA tests prove that this was mostly myth, but he did have a severe case of scoliosis which raised one shoulder slightly above the other and gave him a 65 - 85 degree bend in his spine. It would have been unnoticeable under clothing or armour, but it meant that sitting for long periods in the saddle or fighting in battles would have been uncomfortable. However, it did not affect his fighting skill and he was still described as the 'most handsome man in the room after his brother Edward IV'.682Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2b9cSdm36f
