Sicut Mater Ita Et Filia Eius- Part 1
Yall I finished it! Okay so here’s my personal take on the dynamic between Catalina and her mother, you can agree or not, this is just how I see it.
Mentioned sixtended charecters: Isabella I- @spooner7308 and @weirdbutdecentart100
Jane couldn’t place the feeling at first. It was a strange one, and after a few lazy minutes of puzzling it through, she belatedly realized it was the feeling of peace. Not to say being around the other queens wasn’t nice, but Jane did love these few moments of quiet she rarely gets. Slipping on her reading glasses, Jane opened the sewing kit and pulled out the project she’d been working on. A small slip cover for the throw pillow Catalina had bought her a while ago which was thinning with age. She let a small smile grace her face as the pressed play on her CD player before sitting back and letting the quiet voice of the woman reading her latest audio-book wash over her.
And yet as was usual in the queen’s household, the peace didn’t last. A sharp knock at the door startled Jane out of her state and she jolted, stabbing her needle through her finger. She hissed in pain as blood began to bead at the tip of her index finger. Already resigning herself to having to fix some new emergency, Jane put aside her sewing and dashed to the kitchen to find herself a band-aid which she quickly applied as she walked to the front door.
Jane had been expecting one of the queens to be standing there, or perhaps another one of their reincarnated friends. Who she hadn’t been expecting was a strange woman standing on their doorstep. She carried herself with all the regality of a royal, or rather more specifically a queen. Her skin was a dark tan, weathered with age and she had thick curly brown hair. Dressed in a simple light beige button up blouse and dark grey skirt the woman looked as if she was about to go to a business meeting or to church. Maybe both.
Arching an eyebrow, the woman asked, “Is this the residence of the Tudor queens?”
Rather taken aback, it took Jane a moment before she answered, “Yes, why do you ask?” the woman had an oddly familiar face, as if she’d met her before. “If you’re asking about an interview we usually schedule those over the phone.”
“No, no I’m not here for an interview. I’m here to see someone.” The woman stated, crossing her arms.
More than a little annoyed at having to prompt an answer out of the woman, Jane sighed. “We don’t really do personal interviews on the drop of the hat, or autographs outside of stage door. If you’d like to book a ticket to see our show and catch the person you’re looking for afterwards I’d be glad to assist you to our website-”
Jane was cut off by the woman’s beleaguered groan. “You misunderstand, I’m not some fanatic looking to meet a hero. I’m looking for my daughter.”
Well. That was a development. Cautiously, Jane ventured, “So then who specifically are you here to see?” she ran down a mental list of people from their time who had not yet returned. Thankfully, no one from the extensive Boleyn/Howard/Seymour clan aside from her sister had returned, and frankly neither Kitty, nor Anne, nor herself had any interest in seeing their parents again. Anna’s mother had already returned, so she was out of the running. Then perhaps Cathy’s mother?
Yet the woman seemed to bear no resemblance to the sixth queen, except perhaps in mere passing. Which left just one option. The more Jane scrutinized the woman’s face, the more she realized where the odd sense of deja vu at seeing her came from. This woman and her girlfriend carried strikingly similar features. The woman’s next statement only solidified her hunch. “I’m here to see my daughter. Catalina of Aragon.”
Ah, and there was the confirmation. Jane wasn’t quite sure of what to do next. One the one hand, she didn’t want to lie to the woman and say Catalina wasn’t there, on the other… Catalina had never spoken of her mother, Isabella of Castile, with any reverence. If anything it was stern indifference. The other Trastámara siblings hadn’t spoken positively of the woman either, making Jane wonder if letting the woman inside was the best course of action. Finally she settled on a simple easy lie. “I’m not sure if she’s home, Catalina likes to take walks out in the park a couple blocks from here. I’ll check if she’s in the house, if not you could check in at another time to see if she’s returned.” Isabella seemed content with the answer and sat down on the bench on their porch.
Ducking back inside the house and closing the door behind her, Jane let out a breathy sigh of relief. Technically, she supposed, it wasn’t quite a lie. Lina did like to take walks at the park, but Jane knew for a fact Catalina was upstairs debating some new topic or another with Anne. The two had become rather enraptured with some new book series and were constantly playfully arguing over the story. (Jane had attempted to get into the series, but had eventually given up after not being able to find an audio book reading she liked.)
Trudging up the stairs to find her girlfriend, Jane knocked lightly on Anne’s door, decorated with little stickers and drawn on hearts done in an assortment of colors. “Come in!” her cousin’s cheery voice came easily through the door, and Jane slowly pushed it open. Inside, Anne lay upside-down on the bed half hanging off, hair brushing the carpet. Catalina was lounging on the couch in the corner of Anne’s room, engrossed in some article online.
Looking up to see who’d come in, Catalina broke into a smile at the sight of Jane. “Jane! Did you want to join us?” as tempting as that did sound, Jane couldn’t shake her original mission.
“Sorry love, I’d like to but there’s something more urgent that needs addressing.”
Sitting up a little straighter, Catalina frowned. “Did something happen?”
Nervously, Jane’s eyes flicked to where Anne was struggling to sit up. At the sight of her cousin’s nerves, Anne asked, “Do you need me to give you two some privacy?”
Before Jane could say anything, Catalina waved away the suggestion. “No, that’s okay.” turning her attention back to Jane, Catalina pressed, “What is it?”
Jane worried at her lip. “There’s a woman at the door.” Before Anne could make some comment about being able to answer a door on her own, Jane pressed forwards. “She says she’s your mother.”
Out of all the reactions that could’ve come of that moment, Jane was of the opinion that Anne’s reaction was perhaps the one she’d expected of Catalina. A tight, drawn, almost ashen face full of worry and concern. What she hadn’t been expecting was Catalina to burst out into almost hysterical laughter. “No.” dropping her hands into her lap, twisting one over the other, Catalina gave a strained smile. “No, I can’t believe it’s actually her. I won’t believe it.”
Jane walked over and knelt in front of Catalina. “I didn’t tell her you were home, I can tell her to come back at another time if you need.”
Standing abruptly, Catalina tangled her hands into her hair. “I don’t want to see her at all, I never thought- I didn’t-”
Anne crossed the room and grabbed Catalina’s hands, pulling them from her hair. “You don’t have to see her if you don’t want to.”
Nodding, Jane stood, repeating the sentiment. “I’ll tell her to leave and we can sort this out when you’re ready. Catalina nodded, and Jane looked over to Anne. “can you-” she mouthed, before smiling in relief as Anne nodded, understanding. Jane reached over and squeezed Catalina’s hand, happy when Catalina, admittedly belatedly, repeated the sentiment. Turning back out of Anne’s room, Jane went back down the stairs and opened the front door. Isabella still sat patiently on the porch bench, waiting.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t find her, would you be able to return at a different time?” years of practice at court had made Jane adept at smiling even when she felt like shoving someone down a flight of stairs.
Isabella mulled this over as if it were Jane who was rescheduling a time to impose on her. “I suppose. Perhaps I’ll see your show and find her there.”
Smile growing imperceptibly tighter, Jane tried to keep her tone light. “Sounds good!” she gritted through clenched teeth.
Nodding, Isabella turned on a heel and left back to a small car, before driving away. As soon as the car was out of eye shot, Jane let loose a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. She could deal with the fallout in a moment. Currently, she had a girlfriend to comfort.