1908,

The Garden of Linnea Castle,

Arendelle

"Her name was Camilla? The Crown Princess?"

Silence had fallen among the listeners as Grandpapa had spoken about the birth of the king and queen's child; horrified looks had crossed the older children's faces, and the women had shared glances, for they themselves had all gone through childbirth at one point or another in their married lives, and knew the pain the queen had felt, though none of them had had to endure the fear she had felt delivering her child, for medicine had become much more advanced in the years since the birth of the fabled queen's child.

"Camilla Helene, for the king's deceased mother." He confirmed the children's question, as Sofia and Thyra shared a glance, something flashing across their faces that Magda couldn't read.

"That name sounds very familiar, but I can't think of where I've heard it before." Thyra spoke up; Sofia shook her head.

"I know I've heard it, but I don't remember where." Magda glanced between her sisters, shaking her head with a shrug.

"It's new to me. I've never heard it before."

Paulina turned back to Grandpapa, as engulfed in the story as her sister, even if her cousins weren't. She went to speak, when her cousin laughed softly, and after a moment, kicked her roughly under the table.

"Ow! Pia, what was that for?!" The teenager turned to scowl at her cousin.

"Hush, Ludi! Let Grandpapa finish the story!" Ludmila, the only daughter of the Grand Duchess, rolled her eyes, but sat back, apologizing softly to Grandpapa as she crossed her arms over her chest. At sixteen, Ludi was the youngest of the Grand Duke and Duchess's six children, and one of three still home. Her oldest sister Irina had married into the Greek Royal family, while her oldest brother had married a German princess, and her second older sister had run off to America with one of the Tsar's guards; her two older brothers were both still at home, and all had come to visit their cousins in Arendelle for the summer holidays. They both seemed more interested in the tale than she.

He chuckled softly, remembering another girl who once wore a pout similar to Ludi's. "It's all right, Pia. Stories such as these do not always catch everyone's fancy." The older girl turned to him. A moment passed before she sat up.

"Grandpapa?" He met her gaze. "Did they reveal their marriage to the people then? After the baby was born? They didn't hide it anymore, did they?" His gaze softened, and he reached out; she took his hand, and squeezed gently.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple, Ludi." He sighed. How did he possibly go about explaining the complicated intricacies of two very different courts? Though very similar, both the court of Arendelle and the court of the Southern Isles were vastly different in so many ways- from the customs to the beliefs and even the hierarchy within the court. "Because the court of the Isles and the court of Arendelle came from two warring clans, their customs were quite different, what was allowed within one court was no allowed within the other. What was written rule in Arendelle was unspoken in the Isles, what would be punishable by death in Arendelle was banishment in the Isles. The secrets that remained hidden by the most loyal were whispered gossip among the courts not loyal to the crowns."

"But I don't understand, Grandpapa," Paulina spoke up, confused. "Once the baby was born, well... wouldn't the court be able to tell that the king of the Isles was her father? Just by looking at her? She had to look like the king, right?"

"Not necessarily, Pia." The princess turned to her father. "Some children look more like one parent than the other; you look more like Mama than me. It all depends on which parents' blood is stronger."

She turned back to Grandpapa, who breathed a soft sigh of relief that the young king had answered the question for him, and nodded in agreement. "Your father's right, Pia. In the case of the Crown Princess, she looked much more like her mother than her father- there were hints of him in her, just as there are hints of all parents within their children- but her mother was much more prominent when one looked at the princess. Her aunt declared that she was the most beautiful child in all of Arendelle, and she was doted on, from the moment of her birth."

"Did she have the queen's powers?" Lisi asked, and he shook his head.

"Unfortunately not, snowflake." He replied. "In fact, the queen was relieved to discover that her beloved daughter was powerless; she wished for the girl to have a normal childhood, and was relieved that she would not have to endure the endless hours of learning how to control something she would never wish to have, like her mother had growing up. The people adored her, as they had adored their mother, and she captivated all who saw her- even the queen's council were not immune to the blue-eyed, snow white-haired princess, no matter how they tried to pretend to be."

"Did the king get to spend any time with his daughter after that first visit?" Agnarr asked; despite the romance of the story, he was quite captivated by the fact that the king and queen were able to marry and build a family without being caught.

"He planned several secret trips similar to that first one in the months after his daughter had been born; the princess's first official visit to the Isles was not until the following spring, when she was six months old. The people of the Isles adored the queen's daughter as much as the Arendellian people did, as did the court. And in between state dinners and diplomatic talks, the king and queen spent time together with their daughter; during one outing, he took her to Halsten Castle-"

"What's Halsten Castle, Grandpapa?"

He chuckled softly, thinking. "Halsten Castle was originally the home of the royal family after the monarchy was first established, before they moved to Eskil. By the time the king took the queen to see it, it had fallen into quite an amount of disrepair."