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From: " +Grant. " <+Grant@grant.grant>
Newsgroups: alt.fan.prettyboy
Subject: Re: Victor of the Tower - Part I
Date: 21 Aug 2010 15:30:01 -0500
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In article <elgu66ptp8ei0hn5eoehc0j01q5taipvtg@4ax.com>, NP-f31 wrote:
> An Historical Fantasy
>
> June 1483 AD
>
> As my Lord Dudley, Constable of the Tower, is so infirm and aged that
> he is unable to regularly perform his duties, it has fallen to me as
> his man to perform them in his stead. These are dark days, London is
> in a twist, His Majesty King Edward (IV) died in April leaving his
> eldest son Edward (V) as heir to the throne. But alas, Richard, Duke
> of Gloucester and brother of the late King is making a bid
> for the throne. He claims that his nephew is a bastard! I can testify
> that this claim is false as I have known this child, the Prince, since
> he was an infant. As a member of the royal household I was present at
> St. Mary's near Grafton when the King and Queen were wed. Young Edward
> has the eyes of his mother, Queen Katherine and the hair of his late
> father, I have great hopes that he that he will not inherit that
> unfortunate Lancastrian chin. Events of the past few days have
> caused me much grief as Duke Richard has cast the Prince of Wales ,and
> his brother the Prince of York, into the Tower. I have already heard
> from the Duke of Buckingham that Richard will be crowned within a
> fortnight. If that is so, then I fear for the lives of the young
> Princes Edward and Richard, for the Duke cannot hope to hold the
> throne for long whilst they live. Therefore, I have taken upon
> myself to write a chronicle of these troubled times so that in future
> years people will know what has happened truly.
>
> I care not who is King, so long as the Sovereign is a fair and honest
> ruler. I will serve my King to the best of my ability, that is my duty
> and the duty of my Lord Dudley. And yet, because I know well the young
> princes and love them dearly, I do not wish for them to die. Worst of
> all, if they are to die, I fear it may be by my hand. For today, I
> have learned Lord Rivers was executed at Pontrefac. His only crime was
> to have been a Woodville and a relative of the Queen. The bloodbath
> has already begun.
>
> Two days ago the Princes were brought to me under guard, being taken
> from the White Tower and brought here to less hospitable quarters. It
> chilled my blood to see a Prince treated so evilly. Was it not just
> five years ago that Edward chased me about the royal chamber with his
> wooden sword? He was wearing his father's open crown and it had fallen
> down around his neck and his laughter was like the singing of a
> songbird. I cannot hide the truth, I love the boy Prince with all my
> heart. He is not yet 13 and is a youth of passing beauty, as is his
> little brother Richard who is soon to be eleven. When they were
> brought to me they were weeping from brusque mistreatment, but when
> they saw me their faces cheered.
>
> Victor! They called to me. Victor, make them unchain us. This I did,
> not because Edward should be King, though that is reason enough, but
> because I love the Princes with all of my heart and I would not see
> them bound and manacled like thieves. I took them to their quarters
> and made them as comfortable as I could. It is high summer in London,
> but the Tower, on this side is dank and mouldy. I had made for them a
> meal such as is worthy for boys of their station and they bade me join
> them, for it seems I am their only friend in the world. Indeed, the
> rabble in the streets are calling for the Duke to be crowned. That
> they would believe his impossible claims that Edward is a bastard is
> unthinkable. But methinks that all of London fears the minority of a
> boy King.
>
> Yesterday I had the prince's clothes brought from the royal living
> quarters. Their servants have been dismissed and no one, save for me
> is to be allowed into their presence. This was so ordered by my Lord
> Dudley and the Duke of Buckingham. The boys were filthy as they had
> not bathed since being taken prisoner by the Duke of Gloucester in
> May. I had hot water brought to thier chamber for a bath. I did not
> realized that the Princes had always been bathed by their butler or a
> handmaiden. They knew not how to clean themselves, so I instructed
> them. To see these two young princes in their wonderful nakedness
> shook me to my core and caused thoughts and feelings in my breast that
> I had never known. I am embarrassed to relate that I could not remove
> my eyes from their nakedness, such was their beauty. When I dried them
> they put their arms about me and kissed me on my face and cheeks with
> great affection. They called me their dearest friend and playmate, and
> this I have been until I became their warden. They asked me what will
> become of them. I told them I do not know, but I told them a lie, for
> I am certain they will be murdered soon. Such a thing, I cannot allow
> to happen. I must make other arrangements. I must have a plan.
>
> Victor, Warden of the Tower
>
>
> To be continued...
>
> Doc
> NP-f31
Good story. I look forward to seeing more.
This isn't the boy king you asked me to guess, because he wasn't
crowned, so I didn't consider him a real king, but it's still a good
setup for the story I think you have in mind. I don't know how you are
going to manage it, which is part of the fun in finding out.
Reference for people who might be interested:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_V_of_England
It's a shame Stevie can't go back in time and help you. He has had
practice in rescuing kids. He does that for "Daniel", from his
fundamentalist town, very dramatically. I wrote that right after you
told us about the boy by that name you and Bone and Mac met.
Stevie first starts planning the rescue in:
The Adventures of Stevie #67 "Dan Tells"
And it happens in:
The Adventures of Stevie #74 "The Rescue"
Right after year 2 of summer camp. It doesn't go exactly as planned.
I don't mind jumping the gun on this one, because I told you I would
write this, before.
So far, I've written stories up to #105. My new job is starting up now.
I don't know if I will have time to write more until next summer.
I hope you keep writing and posting stories even after your current one
finishes.
--
Grant
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