Goodness me, it's been awhile!
My apologies for taking so long, as some of you might have seen with the AN I posted, I've been quite busy with school. I am actually working on finishing up a dual degree in International Studies and Maritime Studies before I start grad school in the Spring! Needless to say it's been a rather busy year for me. (To explain, I already had a degree in History before I started this dual degree. Because of this, I only had to take the classes required for the I.S. and M.S. degrees, which was doable in 3 semesters.)
I will be working through updates on various stories, trying to finish at least one before the New Year. Please continue to bear with me as school does come first.
Reviews, as always, are much loved and much appreciated.
Love!
Arialene
-JE-JE-JE-
Jack stormed back into his rooms nearly an hour after meeting with his grandfather; the meeting had gone roughly as well as he thought it would.
He couldn't do this anymore, he thought to himself as he roughly pulled his tie out of the careful knot Sandri had coaxed the silk into. He threw the length of fabric as hard as he could across the room. He worked at the buttons on his shirt as he stumbled through the room back to his bed, pulling off the starched shirt a moment before flopping back down on the new freshly laundered and made covers. He groaned into the mattress.
He just couldn't keep doing this. He couldn't keep up the charade that he was okay.
He made a fist and punched at the mattress beside him, trying to get his frustrations out on the inanimate object he was laying on; better the bed then saying something he would regret to Sandri, or worse, Breit.
He rolled over, staring at the fabric top of the four poster bed.
'I can't keep doing this,' he thought again, the same thought he had after every meeting with his grandfather.
This time, however, he was done. He had to get out of here before he did something he would regret. He'd already said too many things he couldn't take back after the death of his father to his mother, to the staff, and to Sandri. He would never admit it to the man, but Jack didn't know what he would have done without the snark-filled assistant.
There was a knock at the door, and he pulled himself up to a sitting position.
"Yes?" he called, running his hands quickly through his hair.
"Jack?" a small female voice called.
He grinned, standing up and walking away from the bed. "Hey 'Rit."
The nine-year old princess hopped into the room, beaming up at her older brother.
"Have you had lunch yet? Chef is making my favorite."
"Everything is your favorite," he retorted, smirking at her.
She crossed her arms. "Not EVERYTHING."
"No, I haven't," he answered, crossing his own arms to mirror her. "I just got done with a meeting with grandfather."
The smile on her face faded. "Does that mean you don't want to be around me? I know you get mad when you talk to grandpapa."
He instantly felt bad for all of his groaning and mumbling just minutes before. He crouched down to her level.
"I'm fine Breit, let's go get some lunch. I"m sure Etienne has a veritable feast for us to enjoy."
The smile returned. "I want eclairs," she said.
"You ALWAYS want eclairs," he said, reaching out to tickle her as she jumped away from him and dashed out the door.
"Do NOT," she cried, running down the hall as he chased her.
Lunch was a mundane affair. Jack teased Breit as they made their way to the kitchen; neither of them particularly enjoyed formal meals and the staff was only too happy to make room at a counter for them; Etienne even teased Breit about her picky eating habits.
"One day," he vowed, winking at her as he slid a plate of food to her. "One day, I shall get you to eat asparagus."
Breit had crinkled her nose. "Ewww, never!"
More plates crowded the counter, with other members of the staff setting down for lunch themselves; Jack had insisted years ago that if he had come down to the kitchens to eat, none of them were to stand on ceremony. Two maids sat on the end near Breit, one of them sliding her a piece of chocolate. Jack smirked, the staff spoiled the princess.
He thought more about his morning, specifically the idea of continuing to deal with Njörđur. He picked at his sandwich, trying to think about what to do. Iceland, while he loved it immensely, was small. Too small to just get away for awhile. Europe as a whole didn't hold much appeal either; any place he had ran through in his head as a thought for an escape also reminded him of his father.
He knew he wanted to go to a place where he knew the language though, maybe try to blend in a bit and not be THE CROWN PRINCE for a time. He certainly would have to do that, Iceland's small population meant he was known everywhere.
"Breit," he said, turning to look at her. "I'm thinking of taking a trip."
She turned to look at him, curiosity sparking in her eyes.
"Like the trips we went on with papa?"
He gave her a small grin. "Kind of. I want to get away for a little while, see some new things."
"Like before you become king?"
He nearly winced at that statement.
"Yeah, before, before that."
"That sounds like fun," she said, turning her attention back to her own sandwich. "Where are you going to go?"
"I'm not sure yet, I'm still figuring that out."
She bobbed up and down on her stool as she swung her legs back and forth. "I want to go to the Americas."
"Oh you do?"
She nodded. "Like on that show you and papa used to watch all the time. The people have funny voices."
He stared at her for a long moment, he hadn't really considered the U.S.. From everything he knew about the general populace, he could probably disappear rather easily regardless of his royal status. The dreaded paparazzi were unlikely to figure him out there as well. A prince in Europe? Normal. A prince in the US, unannounced? That just might work.
"That is actually a really good idea," he said, giving her a bigger smile. "I'll look into that."
"You have to bring me back a present though," she said, giving him a stern look. "I'll be very unhappy if you don't bring me back a present."
"Oh will you," he said, laughing. "Well, I best not do that."
She grinned at him.
It was silent for a long moment at the counter before Jack looked up again, meeting the eyes of several staff members.
"I expect that you all will keep this quiet until I wish to announce it?" he stated, using a more formal tone than he usually did. Breit called it his "official voice".
More silence.
"I haven't a clue what you mean, sir," one of the maids next to Briet said, popping a grape into her mouth. "Brigitta and I were discussing going to see a show this weekend."
A few more nods and murmurs from around the table, and the conversation shifted to weekend plans.
Jack relaxed and smiled at his sister. They would keep things quiet, though his mother and grandfather would likely be the last ones to know he was planning a trip abroad. He just wondered if he could beat telling Sandri.
"Well Miss Rindahl," Elsa's academic advisor, Dr. Pierce, said. "It looks like you have everything in order, it's certainly what I like to see."
Elsa smiled at her, making one more note on her page before flipping the notebook shut.
"I'll work on entering everything we talked about and release your PIN for registration. You should get an email later today."
Elsa nodded. "Thanks again, Dr. Pierce."
The older woman waved a hand. "Pish-posh Elsa, you're the easiest one of my students. Talk to me after the Freshmen come through, then I'll be ready for a drink or two."
Elsa grinned, slipping her notebook into her bag.
"I did have one question for you, I almost forgot."
Elsa looked up. "Yes?"
"You should really consider doing a study abroad with what you are wanting to do. There are several notable architectural schools in Europe that I'm sure we could get you into. I think it would do wonders for your resume," Dr. Pierce said, smiling at her.
Elsa nodded slowly. "Yes, that makes sense. I- I will think about it."
Dr. Pierce nodded. "I'll see you next semester Elsa, Medieval Technology will be a blast with you in it."
Elsa smiled again, standing up. "See you then!"
Her smile dropped as she left Dr. Pierce's office. Study Abroad? Leave Pabbie and Anna for a semester? Not to mention, how to PAY for a semester abroad. Maybe she could do something small over a summer, a week or two in Italy and France perhaps?
She sighed. It wasn't that she didn't WANT to, she had a whole binder full of places that she wanted to go to. Almost every country in Europe had pages of old buildings, bridges and monuments that she wanted to see.
No, it certainly wasn't that she didn't want to go, it's simply that she couldn't. Not yet at least. Someday.
She hurried out of the building, slinging her backpack onto both shoulders as her phone vibrated in her pocket. She stepped to the side of the building, out of the flow of traffic, and fished out her phone. Anna.
-Are you done yet?-
Elsa smiled, moving her thumbs to tap out. -Just finished, see you at the car.-
A moment later the phone buzzed again. -Roger Dodger.-
Elsa smiled, putting her phone back into her pocket and began to walk to the lot, putting her thoughts of study abroad behind her as she began to think through everything she needed to get at the market.
Pabbie was late.
Elsa sighed, checking her phone again. A cold ball of dread always formed in her stomach when this happened. Part of her scolded herself, saying he'd just gotten caught up in another game, like always, and would be there soon. The other, opposite part worried with the same fear that had gripped her that night her parents hadn't come home.
Anna stood next to her, head down as she scrolled through her phone.
"Elsa, he'll be here," she said, not looking up. "Let's just start without him. I've got homework."
Elsa sighed, looking around for her grandfather again before nodding. "Okay, yeah."
They turned to walk across the parking lot to the large ring of cars, trucks and booths, both of the girls jumping back a moment later as a man on a 4-wheeler roared past them, almost hitting them. The dog, who was sitting happily in the trailer he was pulling, barked happily as they past.
"Hey!" Anna cried out, glaring after him.
"Watch where you're going!" he called back, continuing on towards his booth.
Anna mumbled under her breath causing Elsa to chuckle.
"Come on," she told her irate sister. "Let's get going. Homework, remember?"
"Yeah, yeah," Anna replied as they started to walk again.
Pabbie hadn't shown up at the market. Elsa was now desperately trying to calm the ball of nerves in her stomach as she fumbled with her keys at the door to the house. She breathed a sigh of relief as a loud snore met her as the door swung open.
"See?" Anna said, bags balanced on her arms as she shuffled in behind Elsa. "I told you he was fine. You worry too much."
The sisters shuffled to the kitchen, Pabbie continuing to snore on despite the noise they made. Elsa set down her bags and went to check on him, smiling as she saw him reclined in his chair, the now finished crossword puzzle by his side. She covered him with a blanket from a basket next to him and turned back into the kitchen to help her sister put everything they had gotten from the market away.
No, she couldn't even dream of going anywhere just yet.
