Chapter 8: The Party
Anna quietly raised her arms to help Gerda lace up her party dress, but her mind was turbulent. Her birthday had finally arrived, but so much was still up in the air. Anna herself was still holding out a slim hope that Elsa would make an appearance. Gerda had dutifully delivered an invitation to her sister's rooms, but Elsa hadn't opened it in the maid's presence or given her a reply. Her father, on the other hand, seemed determined to make an appearance no matter how poor his condition. Ok girl, focus. You've done all you can in both cases, it's time to stop worrying. Put on a happy face and keep your chin up.
"Wow!" Anna's jaw dropped when she stepped out of the north hall and into the gardens. The royal gardeners had been hard at work shaping their domain to celebrate the princess's ninth birthday, and the results were breathtaking. Flowers of all shapes and sizes from lands near and far dominated the landscape. Their brilliant bursts of color extended in every direction and painted the grounds like a rainbow. Laughing with delight she ran out into the sun to take everything in. Gerda, Kai, and the other servants followed in her wake with food and other necessities for the outdoor feast that was planned for later that afternoon.
Anna could have spent all day in the gardens, but all too soon it was time to move on to the main event. Beyond the castle grounds and small village that housed the servants' families, a great festival had been set up on the grassy fields that were enclosed by the castle's far-reaching outer walls. There were spring poles, archery butts, and even horseshoe stakes scattered around. Although most of the staff was on the older side, there were still a few peasant children that scampered around yelling and chasing each other. Livestock wandered freely between bustling goodwives and yeomen, brought in from the fields to keep an eye on them while everyone was feasting.
And what a feast it was! There were great long tables laid out next to each other, enough to sit everyone that lived within the castle walls at once, piled high with all manner of food and drink. Anna even spotted a number of freshly caught fish, a rare sight indeed since the keep usually tried to be completely self-sustaining and limited outside contact. Anna set out to explore everything, eagerly dashing this way and that to try to take it all in.
Later, when the sporting contests were winding down and the townsfolk beginning to settle in at their places on the benches for dinner, a party from the castle arrived. "Daddy!" Anna ran over to greet the king, who wasn't in a litter but had managed to ride over on his horse. He smiled down at his daughter, and after some help from a guard, dismounted and gave her a hug.
"There's my little girl! How do you like your birthday so far? Looks like quite the crowd is here, and I bet they're absolutely famished. Well, now that the king is here, no need to wait any longer." He pitched his voice to carry across the green field, "Let the feast begin!" A cheer echoed around the tables and all at once a hundred hands reached out to start devouring the magnificent spread. Anna and her father took their places at the head of the largest table, surrounded by his closest advisors and the head doctor.
It was the best birthday that Anna could remember. The food was incredible, the crowd was unbelievable, and the royal bard was filling the air with music, joyous melodies that blended with the buzz of conversation and made it greater. But there was one thing missing. Elsa hadn't come after all. Anna poked at her food and frowned. Well, it's not like she said she would come. Exactly the opposite, in fact. And this would have been the perfect time to get her back into the family. I bet even daddy would have said yes if she had come.
"What's this?" The king looked over and noticed Anna's mood. "We can't have the birthday girl upset at her own party! Cheer up, cheer up! It's time to open presents!" That brought Anna out of her reverie, and a few attendants left to go retrieve the pile of gifts that had been set aside until after dinner. Anna's eyes widened at the procession before her, there were so many!
Each of the king's council had a brought a present for their monarch's daughter. There were earrings and dresses, beautiful things that shone with gems and silk in the sunlight. A durable pair of leather walking boots was especially well received, and the finance minister smiled at her delight. She got a bouquet of roses from the gardeners, and the interior staff had pitched together and presented her with a wonderful chess set made of oak and marble. Anna smiled at Kai and promised to try to learn the game, he was the biggest fan among the servants and probably came up with the idea himself.
Her father had two presents for her. The first was a magnificent golden locket with a brilliant diamond shining in the center that took Anna's breath away. And when she opened it, one face had a miniature portrait of her father with a portrait of her mother mirroring it on the other side. Anna squealed with delight and threw her arms around the king, even before his other present was brought out. It was a pony, white as snow and just the right size for a nine year old to learn to ride on. The bridal and saddle were leather of the highest quality, a gift from the royal groomsmen. Anna was beside herself, a real pony! She begged to be allowed to try to ride right then and there, but her father laughed and managed to convince her to wait until the next day.
The party went on all day, and not until the sun reached the horizon did it begin to wrap up. But eventually even Anna admitted that it was time to go inside. She walked back through the gardens with her father, who was moving carefully with one arm on her shoulder for support. "Anna," he said abruptly in a more serious tone than she expected. "There is something that I need to tell you. It's not what I wanted to bring up on your birthday, but time is short. To put it simply, I am going away for a time. My doctor insists that a change of climate is needed for my health, and that if I make the trip down South, I can return to my normal strength. I have been delaying him so that I could be here for your birthday, but now that's passed. I will be leaving tomorrow morning, and I am leaving you here."
Anna started to protest, but he raised his hand for quiet. "No, Anna, you're needed here. It's important that the royal family maintains a presence at home, but don't worry. My council will continue to handle most affairs, and I'm appointing the duke as regent. I don't anticipate being gone for more than a few months, or maybe less if it goes well." Anna looked up at her dad, tears in her eyes. His own eyes were tired and gaunt, and she knew that he had to go. But she couldn't bring herself to admit it just yet, and without a word she simply enveloped him in a fierce hug, her head buried in his robes.
When Anna returned to her room, the servants had already brought back her presents and put them away in her dresser and desk. She flopped onto her bed and lay there fully dressed for some time. Daddy's never had to go away for more than a day before. And now he'll be gone for months? What am I going to do? No, it's not about me. He needs to get better, he's been looking just awful recently. It's not fair! He's not even sick, but he gets weaker and weaker no matter what they do. Well, maybe this will help. I have to be strong. I can't let him think that his leaving will make me sad.
Just then her eyes caught on something odd. There was a… package on her desk. The only light in her room came from torches at this time of night, and it was too dim to make out exactly what the rectangular box was. But it certainly wasn't one of the presents that she'd already opened. Where had it come from? Anna got up and walked over to get a closer look at the mystery item.
It was a wooden case, with a brass latch and hinges, about six inches high and about two feet on each side. There was no note on the outside, and Anna clicked it open. It was a drawing case! The interior was lined with felt, and it had two drawers that lifted up and out when the lid was opened. In one drawer was a multitude of charcoals and pencils, and the other had a variety of colored chalks. The bottom of the case was mostly filled with different colors of ink and brushes, except for one end that was lined with silverpoint pens. The lid itself had deep pockets filled with reams of paper of various sizes.
Anna was taken aback by the sheer scale of the gift. Who could have given me such a wonderful thing? This is incredible! The sum total of her art experience in life so far was little more than some charcoal shading on linen paper. She hadn't even seen a collection of this magnitude in one place before, let alone used most of it. Her hand traced over the creative implements in awe, not quite sure that it was all real. Then her hand stopped over the first piece of paper in the lid. There was writing on it! Swiftly she drew out the short note and read:
"Dearest Anna,
Such a meager gift as this cannot fix what I have done, but maybe there is a chance that you will still find it useful. I'm sorry I can't do more. I'm sorry.
Love, E"
She couldn't believe it. Elsa had sent her a birthday present! Elsa! Completely forgetting to keep quiet, Anna let out a scream of joy and danced around the room, still clutching the precious communication from her sister. Landing on the bed, she read the note over and over and over. Elsa really wrote to me. She said love! She likes me! Oh gods I miss her so much. Suddenly she was overcome with emotion and tears flowed down her cheeks, one arm across her eyes. "Oh Elsa," she spoke to herself. "I'm so happy. So happy, and yet… I want more. I want you to come down and play with me. I want you to go outside and see the sun, to sit under the stars together and watch the moon come up. Why? Why won't you let me in?"
