YOU LOOK BEAUTIFUL-ER
Senator Nathaniel Tallmadge was certain that this was going to be an interesting but uneventful foray into European bombast, as noble met noble and discussed minutiae that wouldn't interest anyone without blue blood in their veins.
"I wonder if anyone of them had ever had to work for a living?" he eyed the robes, tunics, capes and gowns that the elite precession of royalty paraded before him as he too followed in their footsteps across the castle bridge.
He also eyed the many nobles who wore military uniforms or similar apparel. "Did they actually earn their rank by going to an academy to study and train? Did they take part in real combat? Or did they merely inherit their rank and played soldier during events and celebrations?" he wondered.
He wasn't so naive that he knew most of the world was like this. A self governing democracy was a rare thing. However very few nations indeed had absolute monarchies either, where the people of the land were ruled solely by a sovereign, dictatorial or otherwise. Constitutional monarchies have become the norm, and the few places that didn't practice that line of government were usually shunned by the rest of the world anyways. Not so with this charming enclave of the world. Everyone it seemed wanted to know this kingdom of Arendelle.
The vendors and stalls in the town courtyard reminded him of the five points district in Brooklyn, and the street performers and bands had the ring of the 'old country'. He quickly admonished himself with the notion that THIS was the old country.
The castle of course was splendid in it's design and layout. It didn't have the overbearing presence of the huge stone and earth glory of the pictures he'd seen of English, French and Germanic Kingdoms, but the structure was sound and probably several times older than his own country!
Several criers inside the courtyard were proclaiming that the Evening Ball would be held in three days. That should give him some time to actually get to know the people since he planned on seeing how the common folks felt about their new queen. He was certain that he would need to hire a translator, since only the nobility and perhaps the men working near the docks would actually know how to speak English. His French was rusty, but his Latin was intact. A legacy in more ways than one from studying Law at Harvard University.
The Main Doors to the castle were wide open and the long hallway beckoned him inside. He first regarded the portraits on the right side of a young child with bright red hair that slowly was turning gold with longer and longer ponytails. "This one must be the younger child, Anna?" he smiled at the curious and precocious expressions painted on canvas.
Turning around, he assumed he would see the maturing faces of her sibling Elsa, the Queen. "Her sister must be just as lovely!" he prepared himself.
As his eyes surveyed the paintings on the opposing wall, his mouth became larger and his eyes became wider. Several guests almost absent-mindly walked into him since he remained motionless for many seconds. Nathaniel Tallmadge merely kept gaping as his vision took in the image of the Queen from child to adult.
After a minute, a small sound escaped his lips and a tear rolled down his left eye.
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Viktor Carlyle and John Samuels entered the main foyer with seven of their men in tow. Both men regarded the paintings on both sides of the hall and were alternating their glances back and forth.
Viktor was replaying the conversation he had with Flynn earlier at the docks onboard his ship, USS Eagle. "Remember Flynn, we need to discuss some details before we set this plan of yours in motion. I have a few points I want to go over with you."
John Samuels however was busy studying Elsa's face as the portraits grew increasingly more current. "The blonde one looks quite striking, but the younger one is probably the more daring of the two." he analyzed. He stopped at the last painting of Anna. Her Coronation dress long frozen and discarded at Oaken's store, vividly painted in green and black, stole his attention. "Surely this beautiful creature was not the same one in the earlier pictures?" He was about to turn around and head back to the entrance when he felt his arm being grabbed.
"We can't afford to draw too much attention here!" Viktor pulled him back. Shrugging, he followed his leader.
The group approached a large man sitting behind a desk that was flanked by two castle guards holding pole arms and dressed in grey woollen uniforms. A little ways off, a much younger blonde haired man in a dark suit could be overheard giving directions and information to several guests.
As Viktor began conversing with the concierge, John Samuels regarded the young fellow. He looked out of place, but his clothes certainly fit the class of patronage around him. His staring caught Kristoff's eye, and the blonde man glared at him for a few seconds before another guest approached him.
Finished with the house servant, Viktor had two bell-hops gather their possessions and began walking further into the castle.
As John Samuels followed, the young blonde man caught his eye again. This time the dutiful smile he was previously wearing was absent. "He must be involved in this one way or another?" he mused walking away, as Kristoff's glare burned into his back.
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Anna entered her bedroom confident that Elsa and Rapunzel were touching up their makeup and would be occupied for at least ten more minutes. She left them both in Elsa's room as she signalled her handmaiden to follow.
"I'm going to put on some accessories and I'll join both of you downstairs in the receiving room, okay?" she hurried out, with Isolde in tow.
"Don't be late Anna, we're already behind schedule because ...oh just don't be late!" Elsa's voice was cut off as Anna closed the door.
She giggled at what her sister just said. Elsa's little show, certainly was entertaining! And completely unexpected! Of course, it was herself who instigated it by her overpowering curiosity of her sister's underwear, and her desire to see it. She really didn't expect her to show anything, at least not in front of Rapunzel and their handmaidens! As fun as that was, she knew that she and Elsa must be more careful. Why had they both thrown caution into the wind, especially with everything happening at once?
Even now, Anna was preparing an 'event' she began concocting since the first time she saw her sister wear her ice dress in the Ice Palace on the North Mountain. The gown was simply beautiful! And the way it fit on Elsa was something she was constantly dreaming about on a regular basis.
No naturally made article of clothing she or her sister ever wore was as stunning, provocative and sexy as that dress which hugged and displayed every curve Elsa had! So of course Elsa had to wear it almost everyday in front of Anna just to torture her with her awesome body!
"Listen Isolde, I'm pretty sure the first thing Elsa is going to do is come into my room looking for me. So go down to your room and wait for me there, okay? I'll get my dress and you can help me put it on, okay?" Isolde knew Anna was anxious when she kept repeating her interrogatives.
Her handmaiden nodded her head, comfortably aware that her charge always acted like this when she was nervous... or scared. "Yes, your Highness."
As she closed the door and left Anna in her room, she could vaguely hear the tinkling and clinking noises of the creation Anna personally commissioned for herself weeks ago when the Queen began her Grand Plan, as everyone now called it. She and Sigrid, along with Kai and Gerda though had a much more complete picture than almost anyone else. They had all gathered shortly after the letter from King Charles was received almost a month ago.
"The Queen and the Princess are lovers." Isolde said simply to the other three servants gathered at the private dining room reserved for the personal staff of the Royal Family. At this time that staff consisted of both handmaidens, Isolde and Sigrid, and the Master and Mistress of the House of Arendelle, Kai and Gerda.
Gerda was the first to talk. "That's unholy! They're sisters! We can't..."
"Have a care, Gerda! Both you and I were present when they were born! They are still the rulers of this house and country!" Kai replied back. "Isolde, how come you to know this?"
"Well my lord, I didn't actually witness anything, but I did see Her Royal Highness, Princess Anna in the Queens room after you informed Her Majesty about the dispatch and asked if she saw her sister due to Master Kristoff's inquiry. I drew their bath and procured a dress from Anna's room as the Queen demanded." Isolde responded.
"That's not enough, and even if it was, they are our sovereigns!" he thundered.
Sigrid cautiously added, "Master Kai, I would never do anything that would besmirch or slander the Queen or the Princess, but I must back up what Isolde said. As you know, I always clean and service her Majesties's room, just as Isolde does for Her Highness, Princess Anna's bedchamber."
"Go on, young Sigrid." Kai allowed.
"Naturally, two persons sharing the same bed would require more cleaning than if it was just her Majesty. And Queen Elsa has always been fastidious. But now the bedsheets are soiled and unkempt beyond what sleeping alone would indicate." Sigrid felt that she was betraying her charge. "If the Queen were engaging her sister in the acts of love nightly, it would not be my place to judge, EVER! I just say what I know to support the words of Isolde that are true." she gripped the other woman's hand.
"I suspected as much, but I will support them regardless! As I served their father and mother, I will serve them as well. Even if what they do is hidden and beneath the eyes of The Lord. They have both suffered much, and though I disagreed how the previous monarchs handled their children, their romance involves only themselves. Though I truly do not know how they plan to continue in the future?" Kai said shaking his head sadly.
Both handmaidens nodded at Kai's evaluation, though Gerda appeared to hesitate. "Elsa's plan has bought them time, and perhaps an answer to the immediate problems at hand. Though I fear they will need our help to continue forward in the years to come. I am prepared to aid them nonetheless. If anyone here cannot do the same, I will accept your termination of service and inform her Majesty that new staff will be required. You will leave honourably if you can maintain your silence as befits your allegiance to the crown! What say you?" he asked them all.
Sigrid and Isolde both shared a moments look and nodded, hands still held together. "We both will follow our ladies to whatever fate awaits us."
"Gerda, I know this weighs heavily on your conscience. Do you wish to remain?" Kai slowly looked at the Mistress of the House.
"Yes, though it may consume my soul, I will not abandon them now." the old mistress replied.
"So be it, and may fortune favour the foolish!"
It was only a few minutes after Isolde reached her room in the servants wing did Anna quietly knock on her door. "Isolde, are you there?" Anna whispered from the other side.
"Yes, Princess Anna." she let her wayward charge into her modest quarters. Isolde quickly assisted Anna with the packages she was carrying and proceeded to dress her Princess in her new dress.
Her handmaiden was amazed at the colour and texture of the material that comprised the ice dress that Anna had made for herself. While Elsa's dress reflected tinges of ice- blue amid the crystalline white ice. Anna's dress reflected hints of forest-green, though the underlying satin and silk material was created to resemble white ice. The shining brilliance was achieved only through the use of thousands of crystals and beads that were painstakingly hand sewn. The whole ensemble was also coated with diamond dust that was embedded into the very fabric of the dress. It had taken the Royal Seamstress and her crew over three weeks to create it, but the end results were almost a match for the natural wonder that Elsa created for herself on a daily basis.
The one main difference of course was that Anna's dress was not cold, nor would it melt.
"You truly rival the Queen!" Isolde gushed once Anna was fully clothed. "I mean, I think you are... just as lovely... I mean beautiful, as beautiful, beautiful-er ...!" she stumbled.
"Thank you,... Isolde." Anna placed a hand on her arm and smiled. "For ...everything!"
"I will follow you wherever you go... Anna." she smiled back.
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"Look Viktor, I can't wait until tomorrow, we need to go now and see the Princess!" John Samuels argued with his "father". "I mean Queen Elsa and the Princess!"
"You fool, we just arrived! Flynn has barely had time to go over our plan, let alone discuss it with the Queen. She won't have any idea who you are supposed to be or what your role is in the scheme of things!" Viktor roared at his subordinate. "Also, we need time before we can actually discuss the changes I made to the agreement we originally had with him and his Queen!"
"Isn't the territory in New Guinea, enough for you Viktor? How much land and property must you own or control before it's too much, old man?" John Samuels responded incredulously.
"Be careful boy! You may have had an education at that military school you went to in Virginia, but I'm the one who paved your future after your tour of duty! Or did you think that you would get by on a pension after the Navy was finished with you?"
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He sat at the desk in his room and was writing in his journal much more quickly than he was used to. The quill in his hand kept shaking and the words on paper were smeared more often than he was accustomed to. Still, Senator Tallmadge felt it was necessary to put down onto paper what was at this time very important to him.
"She is the spitting image of my Molly! Even down to the French braid she preferred to wear and would spend hours brushing. I must find an interpreter first before I seek an audience. I want to know if her voice is the same as well. Certainly Queen Elsa speaks English and French and Latin from what I've been told, but I MUST hear what her voice sounds like in her own native tongue. All of the guests from today no doubt are vying to attract her attention as a potential mate. Since I have no such desires, I will seek an audience tomorrow after having procured the service of a skilled interpreter, perhaps in town?"
A framed picture sat on the desk. It was the first item Nathaniel Tallmadge removed from his luggage. The image was a little unfocused and was unable to convey the richness of the subject due to being rendered in shades of grey and black, but the resemblance was uncanny. If the western style dress were exchanged for a garment that glittered like ice, it would have been the exact image of the monarch whose castle he was currently residing in.
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This is possibly the first time in her life that she was not overshadowed by her sister. Never has there been a time where she alone was at the centre of attention with so many eyes upon her.
"Well, there was one other time. But I was frozen solid, so that didn't really count, does it?" Anna thought to herself.
With her hands still holding the front of her gown, Anna swished it a little as she posed in front of all the guests. The material of her ice dress sounded almost the same as her sisters. The light caught off the material and sparkled with a white glow, suffused with a touch of green. Anna's trademark colour. So exceptional was its construction that she herself felt that the gown was truly made of ice, and she could feel a subtle coolness from it. Her crystal slippers and shimmering cloak merely added to the illusion.
The applause was now starting to register in her ears. So taken with her own entrance, she failed to hear the growing noise of clapping and cheering at her introduction. It was hard to see into the crowd since most of the light was reflecting off her gown and she needed to squint to see.
She curtsied once more and proceeded to look for Elsa, unsure where she was in the vast sea of guests.
Starting forward, she hesitated. "Maybe I should back away instead, or perhaps wait until Elsa or Punzel finds me?" she was deciding, the smile on her face slowly fading.
Still unsure, Anna slowly backed away. But her new high heels were unfamiliar. The left heel caught on the hem of her dress, and then gravity did the rest.
"Ohh, oops!" she squealed, her arms flailing beside her as she tripped over backwards, and fell right into the arms of .. "HANS?"
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Rapunzel and Elsa both gasped at the glorious sight on the podium. Had her hair been platinum blonde, she would have been mistaken for the Queen herself. Except Anna always preferred her two ponytails instead of Elsa's one, and both were wrapped into a bun.
"Is that real, Elsa?" Rapunzel asked.
"It can't be real, I never made her one! Nor do I keep them lying around either. I don't know where she got it from?" Elsa answered back stunned.
Still, it looked absolutely gorgeous on Anna. Only now did she appreciate the effect that her own attire would have on other people. Or on herself, as she stumbled up the steps leading to the throne dias, her eyes still fixed on the dress and the body underneath it.
Her sister still had no clue where she or Rapunzel were as she kept scanning the crowds looking for them. She started forward, stopped, then paced backwards. Elsa could see that Anna was unaccustomed to the heels she was wearing since she was wobbling. Then what she feared most was going to happen... did! Her heel caught on the hem of her dress, and Anna keeled over backwards.
"Anna!" she yelled, scrambling up the stairs, far too late to catch her sister.
She didn't have to. A tall, familiar looking man in a dark blue naval uniform did that for her!
He didn't say a word but caught her full weight with ease as he held her for a few seconds, smiling all the time as if he were meant to catch her. Then, he propped her back up, always smiling. Finally he said, "I've got you your highness! We wouldn't want you to tear your beautiful dress now."
"HANS?" Anna almost screamed.
But NO, he only vaguely resembled that traitor. His dark brown hair sported similar sideburns and was perhaps a little longer in the back. Also his voice sounded nothing like a Southern Isle accent. Though it was southern nonetheless.
"Oh, my apologies, and thanks!" Anna exhaled the breath she was holding. Her heart almost popped out when she mistook her saviour as he caught her. Looking closer she realized that he looked only a little bit like Hans, though his face too was very handsome. Also his uniform was dark blue, not white like Han's. She could make out the letters "U" and "S" in gold, encircled as a pin on his lapels.
Elsa then realized that the naval officer was speaking English. This was nothing new since she, and sometimes Anna, spoke it to some of the visiting guests. Though French was by far the more popular tongue around. Latin also did pop up occasionally, but it was this new dialect of English that was intriguing.
"He must be an American?" Elsa quickly deduced, not quite fully understanding all the words the man said to Anna. "Now is he one of Flynn's acquaintances or a legitimate ambassador?"
"Anna!" Elsa reached the pair who were still clutching each other. She held out her arms and Anna quickly ran into them. "Are you alright... Anna?" She would have to focus and not use her usual term of endearment with Anna tonight.
"I'm alright, Elsa! This wonderful man caught me." She and Elsa standing together were quite a sight as both stood out like shiny and gleaming angels in a sea of formality.
Given the verbal entrance that Anna just gave him, John Samuels cleared his throat and was preparing to introduce himself when an older, well dressed man quickly interposed himself between the royal sister's and his "son".
Viktor was about to speak when the two guards, who always remained within reach of the Queen, physically stopped his abrupt approach.
"I'm sorry!" Viktor quickly stopped and raised his hands, palms out, showing the guards his capitulation. "I mean no harm to the Queen or Princess, I just wanted to introduce myself and this young officer."
Elsa nodded for the guards to withdraw and allowed the man to approach, while still clutching her sister.
"Good Eve my Queen, I am Viktor Carlyle. A humble servant from abroad. My son and I thank you for your gracious invitation that was sent through the good services of the Prince of Corona." He hoped that the salutation conveyed enough information given that his first-mate was foolhardy enough to attend the first-day introductions before Flynn was able to arrange a confidential meeting with the Queen.
"What made him make this rash choice, which easily could have brought apart this whole scheme?" Viktor had to hide his anger. "I sense he's smitten with the wench, and not the right one either!"
"Also, may I introduce my son and First Mate Lieutenant John Samuels Carlyle." Viktor presented the young man to the Queen.
John Samuels bowed and then took the hand Elsa offered and gently kissed it.
His uniform was immaculate. The double silver bars of his officer rank on his epaulets as well as the two solid gold stripes on the cuff of his dark blue dress uniform contrasted smartly with the blue-white dress Elsa was wearing.
"Welcome to Arendelle, John Samuels Carlyle! My sister and I have never hosted anyone from America before. I hope you enjoy yourself here."
"The pleasure is all mine, your Majesty!" his reply had enough southern drawl that Elsa actually had to frown slightly as if not quite catching all his words.
John Samuels noticed her confused look and quickly switched the inflection in his voice to a yankee pitch and re-iterated himself.
He added, "Forgive me Majesty, sometimes I forget myself in the presence of such beauty. Being away from duty has caused my speech to revert back to childhood patterns."
"None is necessary, Mister Carlyle." Elsa was impressed how smoothly his voice changed to the more recognizable northern accent.
"Also, please call me John Samuels or John, your Majesty."
"Only if you call me Elsa as well John Samuels?" Under her breath she whispered to herself, "Vel, dette kommer til å bli hardt. Han er nydelig!"
Anna raised her eyebrow at what her sister said, but remained silent.
"Det vil bli vanskeligere for meg, jeg forsikrer deg." He replied back. "What is the word I'm looking for...beautiful-ler?"
Elsa blinked and blushed at being overheard. "You speak my language?". Anna looked stunned as well!
"It is the least I could do; since you spoke mine first," John Samuels answered back.
Taking his hand and pulling him away so the nearby guests could see, Elsa guided him towards the centre table where Rapunzel, Flynn and the others waited. John Samuels held out his arm and she took it as they slowly walked to her family while all the guests cast glances at the Queen and the young man in the foreign naval uniform.
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AUTHOR NOTES:
1) Norwegian: "Vel, dette kommer til å bli hardt. Han er nydelig!" means in English: "Well, this is going to be hard. He's gorgeous!"
2) Norwegian: "Det vil bli vanskeligere for meg, jeg forsikrer deg." means in English: "It will be harder for me, I assure you."
3) Harvard Law School (also known as Harvard Law or HLS) is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. Established in 1817.
4) This error was actually caught by a friend. I completely overlooked that the uniform I wore and what a Navy officer wore in 1840 are completely different. I just assumed it was the same or close enough. Today, dress-blue uniforms are actually black. But in 1840, USN dress-blue uniforms actually were blue. My bad, and thanks Jake! I had to change the description in a few different spots!
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Preview of Chapter 15
DINNER AND A MOVIE
"It does look beautiful, may I?" Elsa asked as Anna was adjusting herself, unaccustomed to the design of the dress. Elsa indulged herself somewhat and admired the stitching and material of her sister's new creation. She ran her hand up the back and down the side of Anna's lap. The material making an almost magical sound in her hand. "This feels so much like my dress Anna. It is wonderful! And you look absolutely stunning!"
Anna, for her part allowed Elsa the honour of examining the dress she herself had admired on her sister. This of course was her creation. "You really like it Elsa? I'm so glad." She then pulled Elsa's head aside and whispered, "You never did show me your bra! So I never had a chance to make any undergarments!" she teased.
"You mean your not wearing...?" Elsa sputtered. Her cheeks immediately reddening.
"...anything underneath!" Anna completed her sentence.