The year is 1464.
The War of the Roses rages on; a great showdown between Lancaster and York.
Yet, asleep in her bed, fiery-haired Melissa Woodville dreams of splintered shields, broken swords, and the resounding screams of wounded men in the Battle...
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MANY WEEKS HAD passed since the sons of York had made their triumphant return to London, but Lady Anne Neville had not answered a single one of the letters that her mother had sent her. At first, they had been laden with inane chatter, full of such reassurances as "You need not worry, daughter, for I am quite alright," (as if worries about her mother's health and safety were what had preoccupied Anne for the past however many days). But now - as of late, especially - the countess' tone had changed. Her script reeked of a desperation that was very much unlike her, and Anne didn't know how to deal with it.
"From mother again, is it?" Isabel's disdainful sniff dragged her out of her thoughts.
Anne nodded.
"How many times have I told you to just ignore her?" Her older sister demanded, bouncing her son up and down in her arms.
"I am not writing back, now am I?" Anne protested.
"You are giving her the time of day by reading her words, and that is just as bad - if not even worse." Isabel waved a dismissive hand.
"Well, you have not seen how desperate she sounds! She is utterly miserable!"
The Duchess of Clarence scoffed. "Good. Let her be."
"Izzy, she is our mother!" Anne stood up from her stool. "How can you be so... apathetic towards her?"
"She left you to die, did she not?" Isabel raised an eyebrow. "She ran off to sanctuary while you were trapped with Margaret of Anjou and her mad son. How can you just forgive her for that?"
"She had no choice!" Anne cried. "The Bad Queen would not let her come with us, and-"
Her older sister raised a hand. "First of all, stop with that ridiculous nickname. You are not a child anymore, Anne. Second, she could have come out of sanctuary the moment she knew Lancaster's cause was lost. She could have come to us. Instead, she chose to stay in there, claiming she was scared that Edward would behead her, when we all know the real reason why she hasn't come back: She is scared of emerging from her prison a penniless widow, rather than a countess in her own right."
