Inga was up and dressed early. It was Saturday, and it had rained most of the past week, so she hadn't gotten outside. With the new baby, she hadn't seen anyone outside her family. The next Thursday would be her birthday, but no one had said anything. Her thoughts had been all over the place the past few days. She needed to focus, but along with everything else, her aunt had behaved strangely when she was introduced to Lars. Inga tried to remind herself that people sometimes remembered names for no particular reason, and Elsa had been in a position to know a lot of people.
Inga hadn't had time to speak to her alone. Elsa had been quite tired after the first night, and Inga had been busy making sure that they didn't fall behind on her mother's correspondence, especially since the responses to the birth announcement were starting to arrive. Those needed replies. Answering the letters gave her something to do, especially since she had the feeling her tutors were running out of ideas for her. She had nearly finished Euclid, and it was fairly obvious none of her tutors understood the books that Elsa had given her.
She decided to go down to the kitchen to get herself breakfast; it would force her to do something other than think. She knew one thing for certain: she needed to get away. Her invitation to the coronation in Corona might have been a clumsy attempt by the ambassador at matchmaking, but it would allow her a change of scenery, even if that kingdom was the source of most of the thoughts she was trying to escape. She didn't get many invitations, in fact she couldn't remember the last time she'd gotten one, so she might as well take advantage of this one.
She had also made it clear when she was speaking to her parents the week before that she would want Frederick to come along with her if she went. Even with the possible international incidents she could imagine him causing on such a trip, she would like a familiar face. She wasn't used to traveling. Her family would travel up to visit the Northuldra every year or two, and they would visit the trolls a few times a year, but they nearly always avoided traveling by boat.
"Good morning!" Lars greeted her cheerfully, standing next to the door she had just entered.
"Oh!" Inga exclaimed, "I had no idea anyone would be in here this early!" She had been lost in thought when she entered the kitchen, and hadn't seen him standing there.
"I didn't mean to startle you," he apologized.
"No, I wasn't paying any attention," she explained as she felt herself begin to flush. She hadn't really seen him since her aunt's arrival, and it had been nearly a week.
She grabbed a loaf of bread and sliced herself a large piece, then fumbled for the butter and jam in the pantry cupboard. She noticed that Lars was holding a tray with a breakfast set out.
"Is that your breakfast?" she asked, quickly realizing what he had arranged on the tray was obviously not for himself.
"No. I was actually about to take this up to surprise Elizabeth."
"I hadn't realized she was staying at the castle," Inga declared in surprise. In fact, she hadn't quite been aware that the ship from the Corona navy had already arrived.
"Yes," he replied, moving to rest the breakfast tray slightly on the counter next to him. "I was showing her around the day she arrived, and we ran into Kai, who insisted on going to get Gerda to make up a spare room for her so she wouldn't have to stay on the ship."
"That was very thoughtful of them, I suppose." Inga couldn't remember seeing any unfamiliar faces, but she had been rather preoccupied. "But isn't it… I mean, didn't her father… that is… your brother and her father, you mentioned they were also coming, weren't they offered rooms?"
"They're naval officers. They're used to staying on the ship." Lars picked the tray back up from the counter, and started out the door. "I was wondering, perhaps a little later… sorry, I don't want to be presumptive…"
"About what?"
"Elizabeth would like to see more of the castle, and I don't really know very much about it, and the ambassador wants to meet with me at nine this morning..."
"I would be happy to show her around, if that's what you're asking," she offered, now feeling a bit calmer.
"Wonderful! Where should we meet?"
"Perhaps the gallery?"
"That sounds perfect," Lars told her, carefully pushing open the kitchen door with his back as he carried the tray.
"When?" Inga called out as the door swung behind him.
"Eight thirty!" he shouted from the hall.
Inga checked the clock in the corner of the kitchen. It was seven fifteen. She finished her bread and jam and decided to make herself some coffee.
She drank her coffee standing in the middle of the kitchen. No one else seemed to be up, except for a few servants. It was seven thirty. She needed something to distract herself, so she walked up to the library. She grabbed a book, opened it without really looking at anything, and put it right back on the shelf.
She sat down and got up from several different sofas and chairs in the room. She decided to walk to the study to see if there were any more letters she had missed. The official invitation to the event in Corona was sitting there. She picked up a piece of paper and began to reply. She wasn't sure if she would be expected to have a chaperone. Would she need to say so in her reply, or would they just assume she would bring people with her? She checked the drawer where she knew old replies to their events were stored. Nobody specified anything. She wrote out a quick reply that they would be accepting the invitation, and sealed and addressed it.
She looked at the clock, and it was still only eight. She decided to slowly walk down the corridor toward the gallery. As she got closer, she noticed that one of the long curtains was closed. The rest were tied open the way the servants always prepared the hallway first thing in the morning.
She heard some whispering, and a hushed giggle. She couldn't decide if she should turn around quietly or announce her presence. She didn't need to decide, since less than a minute later a servant entered the hall from the other direction and moved to fix the curtain.
"I beg your pardon!" The servant exclaimed, looking embarrassed.
"Oh, we were just…" a girl's voice stammered.
"We were... enjoying the view," Inga heard Lars quickly improvise. "Please, don't let us get in your way. We'll be going now."
Inga backed up so she could pretend she had just entered the hallway when they emerged. She made eye contact with the servant and put her finger over her mouth. The servant quietly nodded back at her.
Inga opened the door she had come through a minute before, and peeked out, waiting for Lars and the girl she assumed was Elizabeth.
Inga saw the servant back up a step to let the couple emerge from behind the curtain, both looking very red. The servant quickly moved in to restore the curtain to its proper position. Their backs were turned, so she decided to back up and push the door open very loudly so that it slammed.
Lars and the girl simultaneously turned around at the noise. The servant was just leaving, and gave Inga a formal bow before exiting.
"Oh, sorry, I always push too hard on that door," Inga lied.
"Ah, Elizabeth, let me introduce you to the princess." Lars spoke quickly, gesturing to Inga. Elizabeth instinctively curtseyed.
"You can call me Inga," she told her, moving to shake the young woman's hand. She wasn't much taller than her mother, Inga noticed, but she had shiny brown hair that made her look almost like the dolls they would sometimes receive from the fashion houses in Paris.
"Just Inga? Are you sure?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes, please," Inga insisted. Elizabeth looked uncomfortable. "So, you're Elizabeth. Lars has told us so much about you."
Elizabeth smiled and visibly relaxed. "He's told us about all of you, in his letters."
"Oh, really?" Inga laughed. "I'm not sure what to think about that. I usually only know about the official statements about me."
"All good things, I assure you," Elizabeth smiled.
"So, should we visit the painting gallery?" Lars asked, looking toward the far door.
"Indeed," Inga replied, beginning to walk ahead. Lars and Elizabeth followed her, arm in arm. When she opened the door to the gallery, she held it for them, trying not to stare.
Elizabeth seemed duly impressed with the gallery, and, compared to some past visitors that Inga had overheard touring the castle, the young woman made no comments to the effect of "almost as grand as…" or "it reminds me of the small gallery in…" or "It's surprising you have this all the way out here," so Inga was inclined to like her. Elizabeth recognized some of the styles, and asked Inga about some unfamiliar pictures, and the princess was more than eager to share her knowledge.
They heard the clock strike nine.
"I'm sorry," Lars told them. "I'm supposed to meet with the ambassador right now!"
He gave Elizabeth a kiss on the cheek, and quickly walked away, leaving Elizabeth and Inga standing in the gallery.
Elizabeth began to walk around slowly, admiring the paintings some more. Inga wasn't sure whether she should tell her more about them without being asked, or if Elizabeth would just like to look around at her own pace.
Elizabeth stopped in front of a portrait. It was the oldest one that included her father. She realized she had never seen any pictures of him when he was younger than that, and had never thought to ask, though she felt fairly certain that none existed. Her mother and aunt looked younger, but not drastically so. It was odd seeing her father with no beard. She vaguely remembered him looking like that when she was young.
"Inga," Elizabeth asked as she walked over, "Lars told me about the reindeer. Can you show them to me?"
"Um, sure," Inga replied, walking quickly toward the far door, with Elizabeth doing her best to keep up. Inga slowed down a little, realizing her legs were longer, and perhaps it would be polite to keep an easier pace.
They walked over to the stairs, and down to a side door to the courtyard. Inga felt the silence as they emerged outside.
"So," Inga chirped awkwardly, trying to sound congenial, "your father is a naval captain?"
"Yes," Elizabeth replied shyly.
"It sounds very interesting," Inga prompted. "Does he tell you any stories?"
"No great battles or anything like that," Elizabeth admitted, "though Mother definitely thinks that's a good thing. Wars are bad for business, as her father says."
"I suppose that's true," sighed Inga, trying to remember that phrase for later use. "What does your grandfather do, then?"
"My mother's father is a textile merchant. My father's family was quite against the marriage with my mother, and to be honest, her family was quite against the marriage before they met Father. Thankfully, that's all in the past, and Lars has a good, respectable career. Nobody has asked about his mother's family, at least, none of my family has. I know Lars worries about the questions the ambassador asks him, but the ambassador doesn't have a say in who I marry, does he? My father is impressed enough with his brother Karl's rise through the ranks that he's not about to object to my marrying his brother."
They had been walking slowly, but by the time Elizabeth had finished answering Inga's question, they had arrived at the stables.
Inga was slowly processing everything Elizabeth had told her. "What objection did your mother's family have to her marrying your father? I hope it's not an impertinent question."
"Oh, not at all," Elizabeth replied, clearly happy to keep talking. "Father's family was almost bankrupt, and Mother's family assumed he was a fortune seeker. Really, Father was just happy he could afford to marry before he was forty, but it does sound a bit like something out of a novel, doesn't it? Poor gentility getting bailed out by the rich merchant's daughter?"
"I… suppose so?" Inga realized that perhaps she should take a break from only reading what her tutors assigned her, at least once in a while. They had been standing outside the stables for what seemed like several minutes. "Right. We're at the stables now. The horses are on one side, the reindeer get the other side." Inga couldn't remember the last time she'd been here this early. Aside from their brief ride the week before, she had hardly gone out that summer. She needed to make a point of getting some exercise. Her brothers certainly did.
As Inga opened the stable door, Elizabeth gave a slight squeal which she quickly tried to suppress. "Oh! Lars says they're friendly, but are they, really?"
"Oh, they're quite friendly, as long as you're nice to them," Inga explained. "This is Samantha."
"Can she come outside?"
"I don't usually take her out this early." She tried to think when the last time she had taken Samantha out at all, early or not. The reindeer all got out together, but she had taken no time out of her day, even after the occasional horseback riding lesson. During the spring she had gotten it into her head to learn to ride sidesaddle, which had taken up more time than it should have. Her parents questioned why she would want to, but they didn't press the point, and let her try it out.
"I suppose they need their rest, then?" Elizabeth inquired.
"Not really," Inga said, stroking the reindeer's nose. "Let's take her on a walk. Sometimes I ride her, but you're definitely not dressed for it." She led Samantha out the door, and Elizabeth followed close behind her.
"Should that one be getting out?" Elizabeth asked with some alarm.
"That's Sven. He does what he likes," Inga shrugged.
They began simply walking a circle around the courtyard, mostly because Inga wasn't sure how much walking Elizabeth really wanted to do, and also because she wasn't sure if Samantha had forgiven her for her recent neglect. Sven seemed like he wanted to ask her something, but she wasn't any good at figuring that out.
"You can just go inside," she told him, "I don't think anyone will mind."
He snorted and walked toward the castle.
"He's well behaved," Elizabeth remarked.
"You think so?" Inga replied with some hesitation.
"Well, I guess I'm only used to horses," Elizabeth mused.
"Do you ride, then?"
"Yes," she sighed, "but of course, I'm not here for a year or more like Lars, so my horse is back in Corona with Mother and my sisters. Do you ride? You do, don't you?"
"I do," Inga replied, "but I've been torturing myself recently because I decided I needed to ride sidesaddle. My mother thinks it's silly, and I should just wear proper riding clothes and not what fashion catalogues call riding habits. I won't even get into what my father says about it."
"I've only ever ridden sidesaddle," Elizabeth confessed. "I don't know if I'd feel comfortable astride, and I certainly can't imagine my parents approving."
"I suppose it's different in Corona." Inga found it odd that Elizabeth's father would approve of his daughter staying alone in a strange place, but would frown on wearing pants for riding.
"Not everyone," Elizabeth corrected. "But my mother is rather insistent about her daughters not being like the ladies who go around dressed that way. And my father agrees."
"Have you been having a pleasant time here?" Inga asked to change the subject. "I know you've been here a week now. I hope you haven't felt neglected, and the weather hasn't been very nice."
"It's been lovely," Elizabeth gushed. "Lars has shown me around the town, and when the rain has let up we've gone for some walks in the countryside, since I don't have my horse here. Sometimes Father and Lieutenant Nilsen have joined us, when they're not too busy on the ship."
"Lieutenant Nilsen?"
"Oh, that's Lars's brother, Karl. But it's hard for me to call him anything but Lieutenant Nilsen."
"What is he like?"
"Very different from his brother," Elizabeth told her. "But they get on splendidly, even if they sometimes tease each other terribly."
"That's normal enough," Inga laughed. Samantha snorted approvingly. "I don't suppose you want to see the garden. It's finally nice weather again."
"I haven't seen that," Elizabeth admitted, "so I'd like that very much."
