November 1471 to April 1472
Mary was only minutes away from the palace of Westminster. Soon she would meet her future husband Richard Plantagenet, Duke of Gloucester and his family. She was very nervous about this family, especially his elder brother King Edward IV... she feared that he would seduce her and get her into bed with him, which would ruin her chance to marry Richard. Her brother, King James III of Scotland, depended on this alliance with England. Mary would do anything for Scotland. She would not let her brother down.
Before Mary knew it, her carriage had arrived at Westminster Palace. Her entourage had arrived a few minutes before. Mary was so nervous about meeting Richard that she was shaking. Her carriage driver opened the door and helped her out. After that, Mary was escorted to the palace. William Hastings, Lord Chamberlain of England, was waiting inside to escort Mary to the throne room. William Hastings was charming, but respectful. He linked arms with Mary and escorted her to the throne room.
As Mary walked into the throne room, she could not stare at King Edward and Queen Elizabeth. They were two of the most beautiful people that Mary had ever seen. She also noticed two young men standing next to the king.
'These must be the king's brothers,' Mary thought to herself, 'which one of them is Richard?'
Mary tried her best to remain formal, but King Edward did not seem to be in the mood for formalities.
"Mary Stewart..." said Edward out in his loud, booming voice, "your brother lied to me."
Mary suddenly felt nervous. 'Oh know... what did James do?' Mary thought to herself.
"James told me that you were 'of pleasing countenance.' What he failed to mention is that you are beautiful." Edward went over to Mary and kissed her respectfully on the hand. "You are beautiful, Mary Stewart. I am lucky to have you as a future sister-in-law."
Mary blushed. "Thank you, your grace. I am lucky to have such a handsome man such as yourself as my future brother-in-law." Mary curtsied to him.
Edward roared with laughter and the surrounding nobles all clapped. Edward then silenced them. "How rude of me. I have yet to introduce you to my brothers."
Edward walked Mary over to the two men standing next to his throne. Mary was first introduced to George, Duke of Clarence. She found him handsome and charming like Edward, but there was an arrogance to him that she did not particularly like. After that, she was introduced to Richard. Mary found Richard handsome, but in a different way compared to his brothers. Mary liked his darker looks. There was a quietness to him that she liked. Mary hoped to speak to him privately later on. They would be married in the near future.
Once all the formalities were exchanged, Mary was escorted to her chambers. Four young women were inside waiting. The first, a young woman with dark, curly hair and light blue eyes, introduced herself as Alice Percy. Alice seemed to be in charge of all the other ladies. She then introduced the other three. There was Margery Beauchamp, a very pretty girl with long, brown hair and brown eyes, Eleanor Neville, a curvy girl with blond hair and brown eyes and Jane Howard, a slim girl with straight blond hair, pale green eyes and pale skin. Mary liked all of her new ladies. She hoped that they would all become great friends.
The rest of the day was spent preparing Mary's chambers. Mary would have rather explored the castle, but decided that she would do that on a later day. Later that night, Mary and her new ladies-in-waiting made their way to the celebration. King Edward was throwing a feast in Mary's honor. She was touched by the king's generosity.
All eyes were on Mary when she and her ladies made it to the feast hall. Mary liked the attention. She had a place of honor next to King Edward. She sat to the king's right while Richard sat on her right. Mary hoped that she and Richard would be able to talk, but he barely spoke to her all night. She was disappointed that he did not speak to her, but decided not to let that ruin her night. When the dancing began, Mary had many partners, including King Edward and George of Clarence. Richard did not even offer to dance with her.
