JaneLondon
King Simon Arthur WilliamQueen Consort
Mary Eleanor
Son?:
Thomas John Porter
Of the illustrious
Royal House of: Wales
In the Kingdom of Wales, in
Brittania
Simon and
Mary were taking their weekly stroll through the market when a young woman, disheveled and unusually pale, grabbed the
King's arm. After calming the guards, the
King questioned the young woman's bold move. She told him her name was
Gwendolyn Porter, a ladies maid to
Princess Anne of Cornwall, his former betrothed. Confused, the
King asked
Gwendolyn what she was doing in Wales. She laughed, and pulled from behind her a small boy, no older than 2. He had long, dirty blond hair and gray eyes and was equally as dirty as his mother. His name was
Thomas John. And she was claiming that he was the
King's son.
The
King immediately denied the accusation. Yes, he has spent time in Cornwall while courting
Princess Anne, but he denied ever sleeping with her or her ladies maids. The
Queen, observant and cool this entire time, observed
Gwendolyn. She, like her father, had a curiosity for healing, had noticed
Gwendolyn was sweating l, coughing and the sides of her neck was swollen. The
Queen interrupted their conversation and asked
Gwendolyn if she was feeling ok.
Gwendolyn, irritated, dismissed the
Queen. The
King demanded she respond but
Gwendolyn ignored the request, continuing to say that
Thomas was the
King's son and demand care for both of them. At this point, the
Queen was getting restless with the conversation - true of not - and cared more for the well being of
Gwendolyn and the boy.
The
Queen told
Gwendolyn that she and the boy may come to the Castle,and stay, only if she promised to be examined by her father. Reluctantly, she agreed.
The next night,
Gwendolyn fell extremely ill, and within a few nights, she passed from the plague.
Mary's father praised her for quickly containing the plague by convincing
Gwendolyn to leave the market. As for
Thomas, he was going to be fine but was now without a family.
After much discussion,
Simon and
Mary decided to raise
Thomas as one of their own. And, eventually, determine his real father.