Chapter Six

Since the royal babies decided to be born earlier everything was turned topsy-turvy in the Palace. It was half past three in the morning. Queen Helena was lying in her bed with eyes closed and listening to the voices of what felt like a thousand people to her.

"Would you like a glass of water? Or another blanket?" – asked King Simon restlessly from his wife.

"No, thanks." –answered the Queen patiently.

"How long does it take?" – came the next question from her assistant quickly followed by another one. – "When should I call the photographer and the Press Office?"

Helena sighed and she opened her eyes.

"I don't know how much time it will take, don't call any photographer or PR person before seven." – she said, then she explained. – "Trust me, nothing will happen until morning."

"At least, can I get a hint on the baby's sex?" – continued Rachel. – "We should choose the colour of the paper for the announcement on the gates."

Suddenly Robert's nanny appeared in the room.

"Your Majesty, would you like me to wake up Prince Robert?"

"I can't get a hint on the gender because I don't know it either. Print three copies of the announcement: one in pink, one in blue and one in yellow, just in case." – she answered, then she turned to the nanny. – "It's absolutely unnecessary to wake up Robert and it's a lame excuse for you to be here. Walk away!"

"Do you have a name yet?" – asked Rachel again.

The Queen shook her head.

"No, we don't."

The assistant got out her notebook and crossed out a couple of questions on her list, but she still had some more.

"Do you want to notify the Grand Duchess of Oxford?"

"After seven." – replied Helena who decided to put an end to that charade. – "And Rachel, if you have further questions, consult with one of the doctors. And you two, give Rachel any information she needs. Now, all of you who don't have a diploma in healthcare, get out!"

"Breathe, my love, don't upset yourself." – said the King, who tried to calm his wife down.

"You too, Simon!" – shouted the Queen, then she continued in a kinder tone. – "It's the middle of the night, why don't you go back to sleep? I have already told a maid to make up the bed in a guest bedroom."

"But if you need anything… I want to be here with you." – protested King Simon.

Helena smiled at him.

"I have two doctors and three midwives, they can take care of me. There is nothing you can do. Why don't you let me do my job and when you wake up, I will be here with two amazing gifts for you." – she said with a bit overacted patience in her voice.

"You talk to me as if I was Robert." – remarked the King.

"Just because you act like him." – came the quick response from the Queen.

Simon finally gave up and went toward the door. He turned back to his wife:

"I love you."

"I love you too." – she echoed his words.

The King made one last attempt to change Helena's mind.

"Are you sure you don't want me...?" – he asked hopefully, but the Queen shook her head.

"Yes. Just go. Sleep well!"


When eight hours later King Simon returned to his wife's bedroom, he found her crying along with their two newborn babies. He rushed to her side immediately.

"What happened? Is something wrong? Are they…?"

"No, no, they are fine, I'm sorry." – replied Helena quickly after she looked up at him and saw the worried look in his eyes. – "I didn't mean to frighten you."

"What is it then?" – asked Simon gently.

Helena shook her head and wiped away her tears.

"Nothing… I don't know… I'm sorry." – she finally said.

The King couldn't wait anymore to find out the gender of the twins.

"So?" – he asked excitedly.

"One little prince and one little princess." – replied Helena proudly.

She put their daughter into her husband's arms and she picked up their son. They were looking at them for a while silently, then Simon finally spoke.

"They are beautiful like you. And you are amazing. Again, I can't thank you enough." – he said in a voice full of emotions.

"Well, you were needed for this too." – Helena replied and they exchanged a long kiss.

She didn't know what happened to her, but her tears started to flow again.

They heard a firm knock on the door.

"Come in." – answered the Queen and tried to wipe away her tears.

"Are you all right, Your Majesty?" – asked her assistant who stopped uncertainly at the door.

Helena waved her hand.

"Yes, Rachel, I'm fine."

"Congratulations!" – the assistant finally said after an awkward silence.

"Thank you!" – replied the King and the Queen at the same time.

After another uncomfortable pause, Rachel suddenly remembered why she came.

"Can I ask for the makeup artist and the photographer?"

"Give us five more minutes." – said Queen Helena with a resigned sigh.

"And tell someone to bring in our son, please." – added Simon.

Helena realized that the first time in his life she totally forgot about Robert.

"Yes, Robert, of course." – she mumbled

"You just gave birth. What is a photographer even doing here? Did my mother call him?" – asked the King furiously.

"No, it was me." – replied the Queen in a natural voice. – "They are the royal babies. The people have a right to see them. We will sell the pictures to the highest bidder magazine and then donate the money for charity."

The King didn't seem convinced.

"It's for a good cause, Simon." – added Helena and she was about to lie back on her pillow cuddling her son when she realized that Rachel is still in the room. – "Is there anything else?"

Her assistant wasn't sure if she had the right to say something like this to the Queen. She hesitated a bit before she started to speak.

"Things are crazy out there. Everybody wants to see the twins and the Queen. The phones are ringing since the moment they were born. They want articles, tv interviews, party invitations… We are go… You are going to be busier than ever, Your Majesty. You should use wisely your two weeks leave."

"I will. Thank you, Rachel." – nodded Helena who was touched by her assistant's words.


It was easier said than done. Five days later the Queen's new stylist arrived from France and the vacation was officially over. Helena and Simon were watching a photo in the newspaper which was taken of their family on the day of the twins' birth. On the picture the Queen sat in her bed with Prince Robert in her lap and together they held the infant Princess while her twin brother lay in the King's arms next to them.

"This is a nice picture, I like it." – remarked Helena.

Her husband agreed.

"Yes, that guy has talent."

"We should give him a medal or something." – added the Queen.

The King gently took the paper from her and grabbed her hands.

"We have to come up with names. We can't defer it forever."

"I know." – said Helena nervously and she downcast her eyes. Then, something came into her mind. – "Listen, I have an idea. Why don't you name her and I name him?"

Simon was surprised, but he accepted the challenge.

"Okay. Deadline?" – he asked quickly.

"24 hours." – came the answer.

"How many vetoes?"

Helena raised her fist to her mouth like she was thinking.

"None."

"None?" – repeated Simon, who was stunned. – "You like to play dangerously."

"Or I simply trust you." – his wife answered and put her arms around him.

The King returned her gesture.

"Can I trust you?"

"You will see." – she said with a strange smile and she kissed him.

Rachel walked into the room.

"The stylist and his assistant are here."

"I'll be there in a minute. What happened to my two weeks leave of absence?!" – asked Helena the theoretical question.

"The twins were born three weeks earlier." – replied her assistant willingly. – "We thought that you would be still pregnant by now when I made the appointment with him. And you never cancelled it."

"Right, it is my fault." – the Queen said ironically and she rolled her eyes.

As they walked out of the room and headed to the dressing room, Helena turned to her assistant:

"I need a list of all the male names which you will read out loud to me with the prefix 'Prince' in the next few hours."

"That is a lot of names, Your Majesty." – complained Rachel.

Helena smiled at her scornfully.

"Thank God, we spend so much time together, hopefully you will have time to finish the alphabet."


The word famous stylist, Maurice Lemonte and his assistant were already waiting for the Queen in the dressing room with a rack of clothes. Helena tried them on, one after the other and she was looking doubtingly at her image in the mirror:

"I don't know… I mean it's nice, but nothing like me. It's just not my style.

In the meantime, Rachel recited baby names without a break in the Queen's ears.

"Prince Abel Prince Adam… Prince Aden… Prince Adonis…"

"Mais c'est incroyable! That's why we are here, to create for you a new one." – replied the stylist who was rather annoyed by opinionated clients.

"I like my current look." – continued Helena who wasn't aware of the extent of the man's anger towards her. – "Not that I invented it, but I like it. And the people seem to like it."

„…Prince Brandon… Prince Byron… Prince Caleb… Prince Christopher…" – chanted Rachel tirelessly.

Monsieur Lemonte waved with his hand irritably and added:

"Yes, yes, yes… we got it. The whole people's princess thing was great! You were très jolie… very cute. We loved your floral dresses… your wispy bangs… the bracelet made by Prince Robert…"

"So what is the problem?" – asked Helena impatiently.

"What is the problem, what is the problem?" – repeated his stylist. – "Honey, you are a queen now. The Queen. You need to look regal… You need to wear more serious, more elegant clothes… and expensive jewels. I want a shorter hair, with no bangs and a more intensive makeup."

Queen Helena didn't answer immediately, she had to process what she heard. Rachel's voice broke the silence as she continued with the names:

"…Prince Damian… Prince Dudley… Prince Edmund…"

"Maybe you are right, but it is a big change, I don't know if…" – she said finally trying to speak louder than her assistant.

"…Prince Ferdinand… Prince Francis… Prince Geoffrey… Prince Guy… Prince Hector…"

"Maybe… I don't know…" – whined the Frenchman imitating Helena's voice. Then, he added more seriously: – "Of course I'm right. I made a fortune because I'm always right. You are a mother of three. You were a sweet young princess, a real daddy's little girl, but now I will bring the queen out of you."

"What did you say?" – the Queen snapped at him after she heard his insult.

The stylist didn't see the storm coming and he carried on with his impertinent manner:

"Yes, yes, we need a queen, not a schoolboy's fantasy."

"Excuse me?!" – Helena was speechless for a moment. Then, she found her voice. – "You want a queen? Fine. Then you shall have it. You are fired."

Maurice Lemonte looked at the Queen in shock.

"What? You can't do this to me…" – he shouted while the palace security escorted him out. – "I'm famous… I'm the best stylist in the world!"

Rachel seemed to ignore the recent events and focused on her own job:

"…Prince Henry… Prince Horace… Prince Hugo…"

The stylist's assistant, a young man who stood silently in the corner in the past hour, was about to follow his master, but Helena stopped him.

"Wait! You, stay! Do you think the same?"

"…Prince Isaac… Prince Jagger…" – recited Rachel.

"Well, I… I think that you should consider a more serious look, Your Majesty, because you are now the first woman in England, which means that you represent our whole country…" – replied the boy shyly.

The Queen nodded and smiled at him sadly.

"Fine. If you feel that way too, I don't resist anymore."

"…but I also think that you are a young woman." – he finished his sentence. – "A young woman who can inspire other women. You may can't make as bold dress choices as you desire, but you can always show the people that you deeply care about fashion. You can support the young British designers for example."

"…Prince Karl… Prince Kevin… Prince Lancelot… Prince Liam… Prince Mark…" – they heard Rachel's monotone voice.

"How?" – asked Queen Helena curiously.

"Prince Matthias… Prince Nelson… Fashion week is in two months." – remarked Rachel between two baby names.

"You can stop with the names I already chose one." – said the Queen, then she added: – "Fashion week is the Queen Mother's charity. She will never give it to me."

"Unless you take it." – cut in Rachel.

Helena hesitated for a while, then she came up with the perfect idea.

"Yes, I can take it and do so much more. I'm going to stage a fashion show, right here, in the Palace!"


The next morning, the King and the Queen were in the garden drinking tea and preparing for their big announcement.

"You first." – said Simon quickly.

"No, you first." – replied his wife.

The King sighed with excitement.

"Okay, but you can't say anything."

"I know." – nodded the Queen who remembered very well her own rules. – "Whatever you say now is going to be our daughter's name."

He leaned to her and whispered in her ear.

"Eleanor."

Helena let out a relieved sigh.

"Very regal. Princess Eleanor… Queen Eleanor…" – she said, trying to get used to the name. – "I like it. It is a beautiful name."

"Thank you." – answered her husband, who was also relieved. – "Now I want to hear yours."

The Queen was already smiling. Her name choice wasn't a very traditional one. She couldn't wait to see Simon's reaction.

"Liam." – she said as if it was the most common name in the history of the royal family.

"Liam? Wow, it's very… original. And Irish…" – started the King and Helena saw that it was a complete surprise for him. After a short pause, he added: – "You know what? I like it."

His wife smiled at him and she said joyfully:

"Me too. Thank God, we didn't choose from those horrible alliterative twin names. Prince Liam and Princess Eleanor. Perfect."