Chapter 11 Her Entertainment

As Adeladja followed the footman to the secret door, she felt her legs shake and her heart beat faster. As her courage faded, she wondered if her legs were about to give way and she would pass out. What if he were planning some cruel punishment behind the door? What if he were going to act as if the disastrous kiss had never happened? What if she couldn't control her nerves and she got sick all over her beautiful red gown? She heard his hissing laugh and wondered what had prompted it. She took several deep breaths and entered the room.

Prussia and another man were sipping beer while waiting for her. The other man was taller and broader in the shoulders than Prussia and dressed in the formal blue tunic of a junior officer. His golden hair was slicked back with pomade and it shone in the gas-lit chandelier's light. When he looked at her, she saw blue eyes like glass, clear yet hard to was dressed in the flashy black and silver uniform of the First Life Hussars and it suited his pale skin and silver hair very well. He smiled and greeted Adeladja by taking her arm and leading her to the other man.

"Adeladja, you are a sight for sore eyes!" She couldn't fathom how he could say that with a straight face, acting as if she had been out of town and not locked in her room. "Ludwig," he turned to the blond man. "May I introduce Fraulein Adeladja Konstancja Łukasiewicz of Danzig, an actress of stunning beauty and talent who has arrived to conquer Berlin." He turned to her, a knowing smile on his lips. "And Adeladja, may I please introduce my brother, Ludwig Bielschmidt. Das Deutsche Kaiserreich, if you will."

Adeladja offered her hand and Ludwig stiffly bowed over it and kissed the air above her hand. Closer up, she could still see traces of baby fat in his face and slightly prominent ears. It made him seem a little less intimidating.

"So Bruderchen, what do you think of our lovely guest?" Prussia practically vibrated with high spirits.

"I think she is Danzig, Bruderherz." The younger man spoke in a deep voice and gazed at Adeladja. She saw him blush under slightly tan skin.

Prussia turned to Adeladja with a proud smile that reached his eyes. "He's so smart! I thought I could trick him, but he has an uncanny sense for things. And speaking of a senses, you seem cold, Liebling." He gently squeezed her shivering upper arm. "I'll get a footman to fetch you a shawl."

Adeladja was surprised that he would be so thoughtful but then reflected he had an audience. Still, she smiled and dipped a curtsey in thanks before Prussia instructed a waiting servant. When he returned and circled his arms around her bare shoulders, he murmured, "I'd drape myself around you to keep you warm, Fraulein, but I'm afraid the Empire would disapprove." Adeladja looked over at the Empire, whose deepening blush made him look like a ripe peach. She was starting to feel a little uncomfortable at Prussia's public affection herself, especially since she couldn't judge if it were meant to charm or show his dominance over her. Fortunately he slid away and returned to wrap her in a multicolored shawl that felt like a warm cloud. "It doesn't match your gown, Fraulein, but it should keep the chill away, ja?"

"It does very well. Danke, MeinHerr." When Adeladja smiled at him, she noted again how his returning grin reached his eyes and how genuinely happy he looked. She felt her own smile widen as she said, "Besides, MeinHerr, who knows? Black shawls with silver braid and trim may be the fashion in the fall." She nodded and looked approvingly at his elegant uniform.

For a second, Prussia blushed and glanced down at his boots; she started to relax when he looked back at her with warm maroon irises. "Kesesesese," he laughed and squeezed her upper arm appreciatively. "Come, sit." He led her to a chair at the table and she smiled gratefully at him as he helped her settle in. Ludwig sat across from her and Prussia seated himself at the head of the table to preside as host.

Adeladja spent the meal enjoying the food and wine and watching the interaction between the two brother-nations. Ludwig was serious and deliberate in his words, at least until he had had a couple of glasses of Rhenish wine. He blushed easily and frequently, especially since Prussia kept praising him to her. "He's so smart, Adeladja," he exclaimed after Ludwig had made some points about the role of artillery in the North American Civil War," that's why he's in the Engineer Corps. I thought he would make a wonderful Kürassier1because he's so tall and strong, look at him!" Ludwig looked down and mumbled something about lacking his brother's flair and courage.

"Nonsense, Ludwig." Prussia leaned towards Adeladja, cheeks flushed scarlet with drink. "I found him at Leipzig2, this ragged little boy toddling around all the carnage after the battle. So I called him in all the languages I knew, but he would only answer to German. I inched over, and offered him some rations, and the rascal came and took it and inspected it with those serious eyes. Then he looked up at me, took my hand and I led him back to camp." Prussia's energy had softened with his eyes and voice. "I know I looked a sight, all dirty and bloody, but he didn't cry or act frightened at all. And so I took him in and raised him." He then turned to Adeladja and she noted that his eyes were a soft burgundy. "And now look at him, mein Bruderchen, an empire." He lifted his glass in Ludwig's direction and Ludwig smiled and blushed.

She felt a pang of wistfulness as she watched the two brother nations talk easily with one another, laughing at family jokes. She had had that with her siblings, and now all three of them were scattered. She put down her wine, afraid that one more glass would make it easier to lose control and weep. She didn't know what Feliks was suffering, and she didn't know if Elena were comfortable or in the same situation as she. She had not been allowed pen and paper since she had returned from Mecklenburg-Schwerin and she had not received replies to the letters she had sent in the fall. I need to write them again, she thought. Even if they couldn't be candid, even if they had to lie to each other, at least she would have something tangible to hold and look at, something that they had also touched.

"Why so melancholy, Fraulein?" Prussia's voice slid into her memories. "I thought drink was supposed to make Poles merry!" Germany's eyes darted between his brother and Adeladja, unsure of how to react.

"I was just thinking of what a blessing family is," Adeladja said softly. She looked at both brothers. "How having siblings is like membership in a secret society, where every word and gesture has a meaning no outsider can truly know. And no one, not even our closest friends or lovers or spouses, can ever master that language."

The table grew quiet. Germany looked at her with new interest and nodded slowly. Prussia stared at his wine glass and traced a pattern on the tablecloth. He then looked up at her with his usual grin but it did not reach his eyes. "Ja," he said simply. He stood up. "And on that note, I think we should move to the music room." He offered Adeladja his arm and escorted her and his brother through the salon and halls to a medium-sized room decorated in white and gold with mirrors reflecting the lamps. A piano was placed at one end and settees and chairs were arranged as if for a small concert.

"Wait." Prussia paused and looked at the other two mischievously. "I have a little gift for you, Adeladja. I should have presented it to you earlier, but your words distracted me. Close your eyes."

Adeladja paused. What was he going to do to her? She thought that Germany's presence had acted like a chaperone's, but now she feared being alone with the two brothers. She looked at the Empire and thought he looked as confused as she felt. For some reason that reassured her and she closed hers.

She felt something supple and smooth circle her neck. Prussia's fingers pressed gently on her nape as he closed some kind of fixture. She heard a tiny click. He then took her hand and led her a few steps. "Open your eyes and take a look," he whispered.

Adeladja blinked and saw her reflection. She was now wearing a black choker with diamonds and rubies that caught the reflected light. She leaned closer and studied the elegant arrangement of the stones and realized that they were attached to fine kid leather. She had seen in the newspapers' fashion pages that women were wearing velvet chokers with cameos, but she had to admit that this was more valuable and striking than any she had ever seen. "It's lovely, MeinHerr Preußen." She turned and smiled at him. "Vielen Danke."

"Gern geschehen,3"he replied, sliding his arm around her waist. "Bruderchen," he said to Germany, "Adeladja and I had a little spat, so I wanted to show her that all is forgiven and we are friends again." Adeladja blushed at the reference to their last encounter. Prussia squeezed her. "Isn't she lovely? Such a small waist—a few more inches and I think I can span it with my hands!" Her blush deepened with humiliation as he spoke about her in that way.

"I think that would be too much, Bruderherz. It would be—disproportionate." The Empire looked embarrassed.

"Well, sure, if she were some beer hall girl from München," Prussia sniffed. "But Adeladja is elegantly built, she can bear it. Ja, my little szlachta4?" He winked at her and Adeladja smiled weakly. She was already fearing how much more her waist would be compressed. "Why don't you admire yourself for a bit, while we have a little schnapps and smoke at the other end? Wir kommen wieder.5" He and his brother sauntered to the end of the room, leaving her near the piano.

Adeladja turned back to the mirror, studying the necklace. This must have been very expensive, she thought, and she immediately reproached herself for thinking like a kept woman. But still, as she studied it, she could see that the stones and craftsmanship were high quality. She liked how the leather warmed to her body temperature. As she traced her fingers along the choker, she felt for the closure. It felt odd and flat; when she tugged and twisted at it, it wouldn't move. Then she felt a very smooth metallic surface. She carefully dragged her finger across it and felt tiny raised disks at each end. She checked the mirror; Prussia and Germany were engrossed in conversation. She turned the back of the choker towards the front and saw a lock with a keyhole and a flat silver name plate. She only needed a few seconds to figure out what the reversed lettering said:

Gilbert Bielschmidt, Preußen

Stadtschlosse, Berlin

She felt sick to her stomach. What a fool I am, she thought, simpering thanks and thinking that he could do anything kind without some cruel twist to it! A red wave of rage and shame ran up her chest and neck. She felt tears welling up in the corners of her eyes and she dabbed at them with her gloves' fingertips. Stop it, she thought. Be furious, be without tears. She quickly adjusted the collar back to its original position and fanned at herself to cool down.

"Adeladja, Liebling, time for music." Prussia and Germany came back to her side of the room. "Did you miss us?" Prussia leaned into her neck to nuzzle her and she could smell the liquor and tobacco on his breath. In the mirror, she could see Germany watching the two of them; he cast down his eyes as his brother kissed her above the collar. He must have seen the nameplate and lock and had enough decency to feel some embarrassment or pity for her.

Prussia led her to the piano. "Well, pick out some sheet music and play for us!"

Adeladja kept her gaze fixed on the keys. "MeinHerr Preußen, I don't play the piano."

"Wat?" Prussia gasped. He looked at her as if she were an expensive new horse who had turned out to be lame. "You said you could play!"

"I did not say I could play the piano, MeinHerr." Adeladja enjoyed how flustered he seemed.

"Then what do you play, Fraulein?"

She turned to face them. "I play the harp, Meine Herren."

Germany looked genuinely impressed. Prussia looked stunned, then recovered his composure. "The harp! Wie elegant!6Quite the rage in the Napoleonic era, if I recall." He turned to his brother. "Does anyone still compose music for the harp, Bruderchen?"

Germany began ticking off his fingers. "Oberthür, Cramer, Bochsa, Alvar—"

"-Ja, ja, ja." Prussia waved his hand dismissively. "Maybe there's one in storage somewhere. Or maybe we should get you one, Adeladja. Would you like that?"

"Of course, MeinHerr." Adeladja forced herself to smile. She told herself not to expect anything to come of the offer, or worse, prepare for another humiliating condition attached to his gift.

"Then you must play, Bruderchen." Prussia turned to his younger brother and gestured towards the piano bench. "Ludwig is not only an engineer and soldier, but also a composer. And he plays excellently!" He smiled fondly as the younger nation selected some sheet music and seated himself.

"You flatter me, Bruderherz. Ich habe Wurstfingern.7" Germany looked sadly down at his large, broad hands.

"Pfft! You are a composer, a creator; you don't need girl hands like that performing monkey Austria. So, what shall you play for us?"

"Loreley." Germany played the opening chords and began to sing the lyrics of the Heine poem. Adeladja was struck by the warmth and resonance of his baritone; it reminded her of hunting horns, baying hounds, and the woods in autumn. When he finished, both she and Prussia burst into applause.

"He's good, isn't he?" Prussia leaned in to whisper to her. She nodded in agreement, touched to see his obvious affection for the younger nation. Germany played a couple of etudes and then turned to his audience. "Time for you two to do some entertaining," he said.

"Adeladja shall sing for us!" Prussia said. He nudged her over to Germany's side. "Pick a song for her, Bruderchen." Adeladja and Ludwig conferred briefly over the sheet music, found the correct key and she sang:

Mein Herz ist wie die dunkle Nacht,

Wenn alle Wipfel rauschen;

Da steigt der Mond in voller Pracht

Aus Wolken sacht,

Und sieh, - der Wald verstummt in tiefem Lauschen.

Der Mond, der helle Mond bist du:

Aus deiner Liebesfülle

Wirf einen, einen Blick mir zu

Voll Himmelsruh',

Und sieh, dies ungestüme Herz - wird stille8.

As she sang the first stanza, Adeladja felt her heart was a haunted wood, abandoned by all life but the wind winding through the branches. But at the second stanza, as she sang about the moon casting a calming light upon the forest, she felt angry. She did not feel love and peace as silvery-haired Prussia smirked at her. There was no abundance of love coming from him, only bait that tricked her into traps of humiliation. By the end of the song, her voice was shaking and she was clenching her fists.

The two male nations were silent. Germany looked up at her, brows raised. "That was a unique interpretation of the song, Fraulein," he said cautiously. He looked at his brother.

"I think you might need to work on your breath control and modulation, Adeladja," Prussia said, his face a cool mask. Then he brightened. "Since Fraulein has so much pent-up energy, how about if we end with something spirited? I choose!" He riffled through the sheet music, discarding rejects onto the carpeted floor. Then he placed one triumphantly before his brother. "There! It's a duet, so you must sing with me, Adeladja." He drew her closer so they could read the lyrics and their parts.

Es taget vor dem Walde,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn!
Die hasen laufen balde,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn, holder Buehl!
Heiahô, du bist mîn, sô bin ich dîn,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn!

Prussia took the lead, with Adeladja echoing his lines. She had to admit that he had an excellent tenor voice, supple with a bit of an edge to it to keep it from sounding too pretty.

Es taget in der Aue,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn!
Schöns Lieb, lass' dich anschauen,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn, holder Buehl!
Heiahô, du bist mîn, sô bin ich dîn,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn!

At the line, "My pretty love, let's look at you" Prussia glanced sideways at Adeladja and almost made her forget her place. The look was disturbing, as if he wanted to caress and eat her at the same time.

Es taget vor dem Holze,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn!
Die Jäger hürnen Stolze,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn, holder Buehl!
Heiahô, du bist mîn, sô bin ich dîn,
Stand ûf, Kätterlîn!
9

As they sang, he had drawn her closer to him, until their hips pressed against each other. Well, that's how it will end, she thought bitterly, he the conqueror and she the invaded. As the last notes of their voices and the piano echoed, she looked up at their reflections in the mirrored wall. Such a pretty, well-ordered image of a musical evening, she thought. If only it showed all the cruelty, deception, and resentment bubbling underneath.

"So!" Prussia surveyed the scene. "We have an early morning. We have some meetings with our leaders about the reparations that rascal France owes us. I shall escort Fraulein to her room, and you need to turn in also, Bruderchen."

"It was a pleasure to meet you." Germany leapt to his feet and bowed as his older brother led Adeladja to the salon's door.

"And you, MeinHerr Deutschland. Good night." She curtseyed and glided out on Prussia's arm.

"So, do you like him?" Prussia asked as they walked down the hall.

"You should be very proud of him." She said. She was afraid of making him angry or jealous.

"I am." Something about the older nation's voice reminded her of Feliks's when he had said farewell to her. Sad and proud, she thought. Just before they reached the salon door where the footman was waiting, Prussia drew a finger down her check and slid it about the collar. She steeled herself. "Do you like your gift, Adeladja?" He whispered.

She felt her earlier anger and embarrassment return. She cast her eyes down so he couldn't see her true emotions. Even when he took her chin and forced her to look at him, she darted them to the side. "It is too expensive a gift for me to accept, MeinHerr," she muttered.

"I didn't ask you to guess its cost, Adeladja. Do you like it?" Prussia's fingers gripped her chin and he peered keenly into his eyes. For a second, she considered lying, just to escape, but she couldn't bring herself to let him think she enjoyed being tricked and insulted.

Adeladja inhaled and steadied her shaking body. She forced herself to stare back at him. "I am not worthy of such a gift, MeinHerr." There, she thought, he wasn't the only one who could give every gesture and statement a second meaning.

Prussia's smirk stayed the same, but his eyes hardened. "I beg to disagree, Fraulein," he said coolly. "I think it suits you quite well." Then his face brightened. "Let's end our evening on a good note, ja?" Suddenly he leaned in and tried to kiss her. Adeladja turned her face away in disgust. He kept trying to land his lips on her cheeks or mouth, and she kept avoiding him. Finally, he gripped her cheeks with both hands and pulled her in. Even as his lips met hers, Adeladja clamped them shut, shuddering with revulsion. Finally, thankfully, he pulled away. When Adeladja looked at him, she saw surprise and hurt flicker in red-violet irises before they turned hard ruby again. "Very well, Fraulein. Gute Nacht." He bowed stiffly before her, clicked his boot heels, spun and stalked off.

Adeladja smiled at her little victory and then recalled that he could wreak all sorts of revenge upon her. Exhausted, she sank down upon her vanity chair and let her maid prepare her for bed. The mortal struggled with the choker and finally sighed, "Fraulein, es tut mir leid, but it is locked. I cannot remove it." After she left, Adeladja yanked and twisted the leather and tried the lock with various pins, until tears ran into her mouth, open in a silent scream.

Finally defeated, she sobbed into her pillow and an unpleasant sleep as she mumbled to herself, "My heart is like the dark night." She dreamt of the moon darting in and out of clouds while somewhere a wolf howled.


What do you think of Prussia's behavior towards Adeladja in this scene? How about his gift? And what do you think of Adeladja's reaction to such a gift? How about Ludwig as a young nation/man? How many of you recognize the song Adeladja sings and its reappearance? There may be a one-shot prize for the first reviewer who recognizes Adeladja's song and another time Prussia/Gilbert heard it. :)

1 German: Curassier. Heavy cavalry.

2 Battle of Leipzig 16-19 October 1813, when Napoleon was defeated by the Sixth Coalition, an alliance of European powers that included Prussia. This Coalition eventually led to Napoleon's final defeat and exile and two years later the German Confederation would be created at the Congress of Vienna.

3 German: My pleasure

4 Szlachta: the class of Polish landowners equivalent to the English gentry. Szlachta could range from wealthy powerful lords (the equivalent of British peers) to well-bred but land-poor members of this class. Danzig's Polish magnates were szlachta. Poland and his sisters would have socialized and worked with the szlachta since they elected the Polish king and exercised a lot of political power.

5 German: We'll be right back

6 German: How elegant!

7 German: I have sausage fingers

8 Lyrics by Emanuel von Geibel (1815-1884) , no title, from Jugendgedichte, in 1. Erstes Buch, in Lieder als Intermezzo, no. 13

My heart is like the dark night,

when all the treetops rustle;

There rises the moon in full splendour

from among clouds softly,

and behold, the forest grows silent in deep listening.

The moon, the bright moon are you:

In your abundance of love

cast a glance to me

full of heavenly peace,

and behold, this unquiet heart becomes still.

Translation from German to English by Carl Johengen, carl . Ludwig would have played the latest setting by by (Friedrich) August Bungert (1845-1915) , "Mein Herz ist wie die dunkle Nacht", op. 1 (Junge Lieder : Erstes Buch) no. 2, published 1870 [voice and piano], Leipzig, Breitkopf und Härtel. All this information came from Ezust, Emily. The Lied, Art Song and Choral Text Archive. REC Music Foundation. 2012. Web. 16 February 2012

9 The song's composition is attributed to Ludwig Senfl (C. 1486-1543). The translation is by Curtis Clark. "Es Taget vor dem Walde." Internet Renaissance Band. 1999. Web. 16 February 2012. The complete translation is as follows:

Daybreak in the woods.
Wake up, Kathleen!
Soon the hares will run.
Wake up, Kathleen, sweet love!
Hy-a-ho, you are mine, thus I am thine,
Wake up, Kathleen!

Daybreak in the meadow
Wake up, Kathleen!
My pretty love, let's look at you,
Wake up, Kathleen, sweet love!
Hy-a-ho, you are mine, thus I am thine,
Wake up, Kathleen!

Daybreak in the forest.
Wake up, Kathleen!
The hunters proudly carry the antlers.
Wake up, Kathleen, sweet love!
Hy-a-ho, you are mine, thus I am thine,
Wake up, Kathleen!