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Her husband had been one of many to perish at the hands of the White Witch's army. Although she was born into a wealthy family belonging to Datramite nobility, though no one of particular importance, and although her mother had been friends with the late Queen while she served as her companion many years ago, she didn't have much for she had married a commoner out of love, a soldier by the name of Becc Stowes, and lost her good standing in society. Following his death, she decided to move back in with her family, for her husband had left her with a son and a farm to take care of and she didn't have the means to support either. And so, she and her son moved to the capital to live in a grand house. While living there, she attended Prince James's coronation, following his parents' death, and though the newly appointed monarch looked miserable (how could he not, he had just lost his family), her mother advised her to get close to the king. She knew it was the smart thing to do, but she couldn't do that just yet. That being: move on. She couldn't see anyone like that just yet. Instead, she dedicated her time to raising her son. It wasn't until five years or so later that started to think about marrying again. But who? Who would take her in with a son? She was courted by a few men and sought after many, for she was strikingly beautiful, but they were either not looking for something serious, were put off by the fact that she already had a son, or wanted to marry her but didn't want her son around. The only man who had ever been accepting to her AND her son was Prince Arnas. This had been delightful news for her parents who hoped for an advantageous marriage, but something just didn't feel quite right for her. He was nice and pleasant to be around, but she wanted more than nice and pleasant. She tried to let him down easy, for she was far too gentle, but he just thought she was playing hard to get. He wrote saying he wanted her to accompany him to King Peter's wedding. She knew she wanted to make things clear for him again, and she felt like she needed some space from her controlling parents, so she decided to move away, to Narnia, and try to disappear for a while. She also knew her parents would tell the Prince where she was if he asked, so she didn't tell anyone, no, she just took her son, some belongings, and left. She had known Princess Imira from before and figured she could help her get a job or something. Worst case, she'd return to her parents. But to her surprise the Princess was away and in her place she found a most handsome, young, and polite Lord offering not only to help her but a place to stay at with her son free of charge and help in getting her a job either with the Princess or somewhere else. She felt surprisingly at ease with this strange Lord, like she could trust him, and she figured if the princess trusted him enough to leave him in charge, then she could too.
She had been staying at his home for nearly a month now. A beautiful large house with many rooms and a nice garden. Her son liked Lord Stryder well enough and surprisingly so did Lord Stryder. The three of them often had breakfast together, but dinner just the two adults, Lord Stryder tended to get back late, if he got back at all. He usually sent a message so she wouldn't wait up for him. Lady Baldwin couldn't help but wonder what it would be like if this was her life.
