Chapter 1
Briet came in quickly, opening the blinds and letting in the winter sun. "Hans! Hans you must wake up!" The young boy sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes lazily.
He glared at the light streaming into the room before falling back to his pillow. The old maid sighed and walked over to the boy. With a smirk she grabbed hold of his blanket and yanked hard.
"Hey! C'mon Briet let me sleep," Hans rolled over onto his belly and threw his arms over his head.
"You can't sleep all day on your birthday! Six years old today, big man you're comin' to be." Breit could only laugh as the young prince fell back to sleep.
"Well, guess you leave me no choice, little king." The maid tackled the boy, tickling him mercilessly. He awoke immediately, squealing with laughter. "Don't you want to wake up with the sky?"
"Oh the sky can stay awake all night, but I wanna sleep. But, if I had a birthday sandwich I could just maybe get outta bed," he said dramatically.
Briet couldn't help but laugh at boy's over the top method of request. "Is that so? Well I don't know what might be in the kitchen." Hans sat up excitedly and bounced off the bed, eager to enjoy his favourite food.
*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*
"Hans! You're he-" she stopped short and giggled uncontrollably.
He was confused. "Eka? What's so funny?" The girl continued to laugh and pointed at the prince.
"You are!" He looked down at himself and finally realized what was wrong, and he couldn't help but laugh himself. He was still in his pyjamas. He also hadn't bothered to fix his hair before coming to the kitchen. Hans had been content to leave the red mess sticking up in every direction.
He couldn't have done much to help it anyway. He looked quite restless compared to his young friend. Viveka's short, strawberry blonde hair was pulled up with a blue ribbon, her blue eyes bright with excitement. His tired, green eyes and messy red hair didn't portray how awake he really felt.
Even the way they were dressed contrasted. Hans's oversized shirt, pants, and bare feet. She wore something more fitting for the cold weather: a long sleeved dress, boots, and a warm cape.
"Who could be laughing so much?" The maid laughed as she came in picking up the two. "Certainly you wee little things aren't making such a ruckus."
"Can Hans have the sandwich I made him now?" Viveka practically combusted from excitement. She had put her six year old mind to hard work thinking of the perfect combination of meats, cheeses, and condiments.
"You made my breakfast?" He gasped. He wiggled out of Briet's hold and scurried to the counter.
*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*
"Now, Ludwik, tell me more about the royal family," said the duke, Cladious
"Well the head of the family, King Haakon IV, has been on the throne since his father's death. That was, let's see, twenty years ago? Much like the other natives of the Southern Isles, he has blonde hair and brown eyes. Very muscular and tall."
He continued, "He has been married for nineteen years to Queen Daiana. They have thirteen sons. She is quite beautiful; petite, red hair, green eyes, fair skin and freckles."
"I see. Can you tell me more about the sons?" Asked Cladious.
"Of course, sir. The eldest is Kristoffer, nineteen years old. He is much like his father in both appearance and mind, except he has compassion. And kindness. And all of those pleasant qualities Haakon lacks."
"He is the next in line, yes?" The duke confirmed.
Ludwik nodded, "Next is Evinrude. A year younger than Kristoffer. Not the best of company I must admit. Blonde hair like his father, but with his mother's eyes. Evin very much likes to pick on his younger siblings, but at heart I think he loves them more than anything else.
"Then, there are the twins," Ludwik sighed.
The duke laughed, "Are they a duo of terror?"
"Well, yes, but not in the usual way of twins. They are no masters of mischief. Very quiet, and really quite polite. But they have their father's silently sadistic personality. Both have strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes. They're seventeen.
"Then you have Aren. He's nice, but very quiet and secluded. Intelligent, also, keeps himself in that library all day. He's sixteen. One of only two siblings with brown hair. He has brown eyes like his father.
"Joris is after that. Nothing really special about him, he's pretty average. Looks like his mum. Barend is just after him, the other brother with brown hair. He's a lot like Joris. Joris is fifteen, Barend is thirteen.
"They do have a lot of children, don't they?" Said Cladious.
Ludwik laughed, "Yes, and there are more. Morten and Klaus. Morten is meaner than a snake, Klaus is very sweet. Both look like their father. They are twelve and eleven.
"Kerk, Bram, Dael, and Hans are the youngest. Kerk has blonde hair, green eyes. He's quiet and keeps to himself. Bram lives his life to pick on Kerk. He's got strawberry blonde hair and brown eyes. Kerk is nine, Bram eight.
"Dael and Hans are close. Hans is Dael's interpreter, literally. Dael is a mute and Hans always seems to understand him. When he was a child his tongue had to be removed. Dael, who is seven, has red hair and brown eyes. He doesn't look anything like his father unlike his brothers.
"Hans, being the youngest at six, doesn't get much attention from his parents. Many of the smaller brothers don't. His brothers are another story. As the baby of the family he's often picked on. He bears a strong resemblance to his mother with red hair, green eyes, and freckles. I must say he's the kindest and most enjoyable brother of the thirteen."
"Well. If you ask me thirteen brothers in a royal family reeks of rivalry and turmoil," said the duke.
"Oh. Well, they get on fine I suppose.."
*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•*•
Whoever you are, thank you for reading! You're a cutie. Uh, so, sorry it's so short. Only the first chapter and it's a bit slow going. But I will be back with more! Little Hans will shine! Sort of.