Authors note: Welcome to another chapter of the red rose and the wolf. Here I humbly present this new chapter for all of you my darling readers to read to your hearts delight. So enough about me blabbering, hope you all enjoy this new chapter and please review when done as your opinions matter to me and help me make the story better. :)
Any way, sit back and enjoy this new chapter my lovely readers. :)
Corona was quite different from home, that much Ross could tell. The people there seemed livelier, more expressive; and compared to the modest hues that he often saw in Arendelle, Corona seemed more vibrant, more colorful. Maybe it was because of the warmer climate, but everywhere he turned, he could see friendly, pleasant faces and a rainbow's worth of color in every shade hue, and tone imaginable.
Not to say that there was anything wrong with Arendelle, but what he had seen so far was a pleasant change in what he was normally accustomed to.
When Ross got up the next day, he was brimming with excitement. Uncle Eugene had promised to take him and his cousins on a carriage tour of the capital city Branaüand its neighboring countryside, something that he had been looking forward to even before the onset of his visit.
Once he was groomed and dressed, Ross then slipped on his gloves and immediately made his way to the dining hall to have breakfast with his aunts, uncles, and meal itself was a traditional Coronan breakfast spreadconsisting of sweet sausages, buttery bread rolls, eggs – hard-boiled, soft,-boiled, and poached, cheese, honey, jam, milk, and coffee. Ross dug into his food with gusto, savoring every bite; and for a moment, everyone was far too busy eating to even talk.
Elios was the first to clear his plate. "All done!" he declared, jumping up from his seat. "I'm going to get ready now."
"Hey, slow down there, Champ! No need to rush!"Eugene chided. "The day's barely started and…" He sighed, noticing Elios' half-full glass. "…do try to finish your milk."
"But I hate the stuff…" he whined. However, whatever protest he had died and he did as he was told after a singlestern look from Rapunzel.
After breakfast, Eugene ushered the children and Ross' aunts to the castle's main entrance where a carriage was already waiting outside. However, just as he was leaving, Ross noticed that his uncles had remained behind withKing Frederick. They were deep in discussion and judging by the snippets of their conversation, it was apparent that they were locked in a heated argument.
"What was that all about?" Ross inquired, looking up atEugene.
The Coronan prince blanched. "What was what?"
"You know, that!" Ross replied, pointing towards the breakfast room. "Why is Uncle Frederick yelling at Uncles Caleb, Erik, Lars, and Anton?"
"It's nothing too serious," Eugene lied. Truth be told, there was no love lost between him and Hans' brothers' either, but for the sake of his children and in memory of his dead friend, he had chosen to be civil with them and maintain his friendship with Elsa. Frederick, however, was a different story altogether. "Just a minor spat. I'm sure they'll be able to work it out."
Ross did not look too convinced, but decided not to press the issue, so he wisely held his tongue.
"So, are you ready to go?" Eugene asked, his tone unnaturally chipper.
"Yes, but why take the carriage?" Ross replied, "The city center is just right outside the castle. We could just walk there."
"True," said the brunet, "But there's something else I want to show you."
"What is it?"
Eugene chuckled at his nephew's eager curiosity. "You'll just have to wait and see."
So far Ross was having the time of his life. Never had he felt so liberated. Back home in Arendelle, he often stayed with the castle premises, only leaving on rare occasions. Even then, he was heavily chaperoned by either his mother or any one of his relatives. However, among them, his aunts were probably the most lenient, and he was always happy to have them watch over him. Even now, on this trip, though they were there to help Eugene keep an eye on him, he had been given enough leeway to explore and just be a child.
For that morning, that had already gone to all sorts of places – the farmer's market, the local mill, and much to the children's delight, the alchemist's workshop, where the children met up with Varian, the proprietor and a friend of Eugene and Rapunzel.
"Ready for one more stop?" Eugene asked as he helped Ross into carriage.
"Where to?" he asked excitedly.
"You'll see…"
And so, the carriage began its journey out of town, trundling past golden fields of wheat, picturesque meadows, and quaint little peasant cottages. It made its way down a pleasant, fertile valley until it reached its destination – a stately chateau built of stone.
It was a beautiful building, that much Ross could tell, but it looked somewhat dreary and deserted. Heavy drapes hung by the windows, what little of the interior he could see was obscured by the shadows, and the stone steps had weeds growing in the cracks. It clearly had not been lived in for quite some time. By contrast, the gardens and fields were clearly well-maintained by judging by the handful of servants dutifully working outside. And upon seeing the visitors alight from the vehicle, they stopped and bowed.
"What is this place?" Ross queried as he peered up at the edifice.
However, Eugene did not reply. He simply acknowledged the servants' greeting and requested for the master key. Once it was in his hands, he then proceeded to open the door. "Women and children first," he said, motioning for his traveling companions to enter.
The moment Ross stepped into the foyer, he wasbombarded with a wave of nostalgia despite having never set foot in the place before. Everything about the chateauevoked the feeling of home and family, from the elegant staircase, that greeted the guests, right down to the dusty throw rug by the hearth.
Bit by bit, his wanderlust began to take over as he explored every nook and cranny of the home. There was a library filled with all sorts of books, a sitting room adorned with rare works of art, a music room equipped with an array of fine instruments, and a sun room that now sadly held the withered remains of what used to be exotic plants. From what he could glean about his surroundings, whoever once owned the place had to have been a person of great wealth and taste.
Now out of all the rooms in the chateau, there was one inparticular drew his interest. It was a bedroom on the second floor with ivory-colored wallpaper and green carpets. It was modest in size, but still well-furnished. Thefurniture itself was fairly standard – a canopy bed made of dark-stained oak, a side table, a couple of armchairs, a chest of drawers, and a work desk among others. It was, by all means, a very ordinary room, but for some odd reason he could feel a connection with its last occupant.
And by the looks of it, whoever lived in that room must have been some sort of explorer. Star charts and maps, yellowed with age, lay scattered on the dusty work desk.A bookshelf laden with tomes and scrolls stood next to it, and in a nearby corner sat a large globe of the world,covered in cobwebs.
However, the most interesting item in that room was an elaborate yet peculiar clock that seemed to be of foreign craftsmanship. It was shaped like a Chinese pagoda with a mechanical nightingale perched on top. It seemed to be in need of tuning though as it no longer accurately told time, but it was still running. When the long hand struck twelve, the nightingale began to sing and the pagoda opened to reveal little moving figurines who played a small drum before returning inside.
Ross laughed in delight, amused by this strange little machine. But just as he was about to reach out and turn the long hand back to twelve, Eugene came in.
"This was his room, you know," said the older man, his voice heavy with emotion.
"His room?" Ross parroted, confused.
"Your father's…" Eugene expounded. "He was a good man – noble, brave, and loyal to a fault." He sniffled. "He was a real charmer with the ladies, too." He chuckled wryly. "Not like me, of course, but a very close second. After all, he was able to successfully court your mother."
Eugene's words had Ross' full interest now. This was his chance to know more about his father, and he knew thatthe Coronan prince would be more open to disclosing information that his mother or Arendellian relatives could not. "I didn't know he lived in a house like this," he remarked.
"Why wouldn't he?" said Eugene. "Before marrying your mother, your father was a count, then later a duke, andwealthy one at that. He was a member of the Corona royal court and a famous admiral, to boot. Fearless in his exploits, but again only second to me. And did I ever tell you of the time he...?"
It was sunset when Ross and Eugene finally returned to the castle. They had wound up spending the whole day at the de Mointeiun Chateau, and so far it had been quite the experience for the young prince. He got to enjoy the visit to his father's childhood home; but more importantly, he felt that he was able to form a connection and grow closer to the man, even if it was through his past.
Before they left, Ross and Eugene had also passed by the family gravesite to pay their respects to Amelia, Alexander, Galen and Méline. It was a tragedy that they died never knowing whatever became of Hans, but at the same time, Ross knew that by now, they must have been reunited with his father, all earthly ills forgotten.
'Still, they must've really good folk for everyone to speak so highly of them,' he noted. Green eyes glinted with resolve and determination. 'I hope I can be the kind of person they were too. Please… Watch me…'
After dinner that night, Ross and Lars went to the library to do some light reading as per Lars' insistence. "Books before bed are good for the head," he would say every time he handed Ross his weekly reading assignments. "After all, an idle mind can lead to a real bind."
Ross browsed through the shelves, perusing the titles before him. Ivanhoe, Great Expectations, The Complete Works of Shakespeare, Frankenstein, Bullfinch's Mythology, these were just some of the literary material in Lars' approved reading list. However, he was not interested in any of those books as they were all in English, and he found it troublesome to read and translate at the same time.
Interestingly among that cornucopia of literary classicswas a series of penny dreadfuls entitled The Adventures of Flynn Rider. Ross had a secret collection himself, mostly smuggled in by a few of the servants' boys, and so far, they had been fairly entertaining. 'Now that sounds a lot more like it,' he thought, picking up the latest volume. But before he could even start, Lars swooped in and snatched the book away.
"Ross, you know you're not supposed to read that," he chided with a disapproving click of his tongue. "Honestly, it's all stuff and nonsense, and the main protagonist is such a terrible role model." He scoffed. "A gentleman thief? Really? A cheap copy of Robin Hood, more like!"
"But Uncle, I don't feel like reading any English books tonight," Ross protested. "Don't they have any Norwegian books instead?
Lars rubbed his chin in rumination. "Well, it has been a long day, so I suppose we can try to scrounge up something else."
After searching for another twenty-odd minutes, Ross finally found a book that was written in Norwegian, the only one in the entire collection. "Askelúr and Other Household Tales?" he murmured, reading the cover.
Upon hearing this, Lars grew pale and his eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "Pardon me but did you just say Askelúr and Other Household Tales?"
"Yes. I can read it, can't–" Ross replied, holding up the book, only to yelp when Lars snatched it out of his hands. "HEY!" he cried, startled. "What gives, Uncle Lars?"
"You shouldn't be reading that book," the bespectacled man told him sternly.
Now Ross was confused. Did his uncle want him to read or not? "Why?"
Now it was Lars' turn to be taken aback. Ross was normally the kind of child who did as he as was told, so to hear him question his instructions was an unexpected development. "It's uh…" Inwardly, he was kicking himself as he racked his brain for an appropriate response. "It's not something you'd really enjoy, what with all its romance and lovey-dovey nonsense. Yes, not at all appropriate for children."
Ross narrowed his eyes, not thoroughly convinced. "If that's so, then why is it in the märchen section?"
"Well, maybe it was misplaced," Lars hastily replied,slipping the book higher up a different shelf. "Oh, I know! Why don't you read this instead?" he suggested as he pulled out another book and handed it to his nephew.
"The Adventures of Flynn Rider?" Ross asked, holding it up for Lars to see.
"Yes! On second thought, it's a better alternative. Much, much, much better. " He laughed, but Ross could tell that Lars was nervous. He was hiding something, that much he knew.
'And I'm going to find on what it is,' he vowed, keeping his eyes trained on the book sitting ever so innocently up in the shelf.
It was now two in the morning and by then everyone in Corona Castle was fast asleep. That is to say, everyone except for the night patrol and one Prince Rosenrød of Arendelle.
Taking great care to avoid the guards and not get caught, Ross stealthily tiptoed out of his room and down the hall, ducking and hiding whenever he could. Silently, he crept down the corridors until he reached his intended destination – the castle library. Making sure that no one had spotted him and that he was completely alone, he ten quickly slipped inside.
There, he summoned a small wisp of flame to provide a bit of light – bright enough for him to avoid stumbling in the dark, but also dim enough to avoid attracting unwanted attention. After that, he set to work retracing his steps until he found the shelf where Lars had secreted the book far out of his reach.
Just then, he spotted a wheeled ladder a little a bit further inside. A stroke of good luck indeed. With it, he was able to clamber up to the upper shelves and retrieve the in the dim light, the title was as clear as day – Askelúr and Other Household Tales. Ross frowned, puzzled by Uncle Lars' reaction. 'Why go through all that trouble to hide a book like this?'
As the cover title indicated, Askelúr was indeed the first story in the anthology. According to its preface, it was a Norwegian Cinderlad story based on true events. And as Ross began to read, he could see why Lars denounced the book as ridiculous. The sequence of events were far too contrived and romance between Askelúr and the princess was just too far-fetched.
Still, there was one element in the story that genuinely caught his attention. One of the illustrations for the story showcased a pair of gloves. That in itself would have been nothing out of the ordinary, the gloves in that particular illustration were ornately embroidered and oddly familiar. Absently, he traced the pattern. He had definitely seen those gloves somewhere before, but where?
Beta writter: Nightrain and Brownstone.
To be continued...
Authors note: So far so good... but this could be the calm before the storm. Any way, hope you enjoy the chapter, please leave a review to tell me what you think and stay tuned for the next chapter..