Rifiuto: Non Mirena
December, 1857
Buckingham Palace,
United Kingdom
Every newspaper in Britain wanted to be the first to make the headline-
Scandinavian Royals Share Christmas Kiss on Balcony of Buckingham Palace!
And it wasn't the only headline to document such a historic kiss.
Southern Isles King Caught Kissing Queen of Arendelle!
During a visit to Britain to celebrate the Christmas holidays at the request of the British Queen, it was noted that King Johannes IV, of the Southern Isles, was caught locked in a kiss with Iduna Elisabeth II, ruling Queen of Arendelle. It has been long speculated that the King and Queen have been locked in a passionate, secret love affair, due to the laws of their countries, to the point where rumors have swirled that the queen's six children were actually sired by the king. In fact, when out and about with the British royals earlier in the week, the Arendellian Queen was seen to have a distinctively noticeable swell beneath the fabric of her dress. If the rumors are true, then could that mean the King of the Isles and Queen of Arendelle have another royal heir on the way, and if so, what will this mean for the succession of their treaty-locked countries...
In the years since, whenever asked, the king always admitted that it started with a sprig of mistletoe and a bet.
The two families had spent a great deal of time together, despite Victoria's royal duties, and the continuous 'talks' the three monarchs had to be locked in- talks that were nothing more than a formality. In facet, it was over lunch one afternoon during their visit that Albert brought up mistletoe. "Surely they must have mistletoe in Scandinavia."
"They do, and in early times, it was tradition to kiss beneath it in order to obey the goddess Frigg, who declared that mistletoe would bring love instead of death to the world." Hans said, sipping his coffee.
"Why, Uncle?" Arthur asked, curious.
"According to myth, Loki tricked another god into killing her son with a spear made from mistletoe, before he was brought back to life." Elsa added, as the children shared glances.
"Who's Loki?" Alice raised an eyebrow.
"The trickster god of Scandinavian myth." Annes replied. The boy loved to read, especially mythology and the like. Much more studious that his older sister and younger brother, the firstborn prince and second-born child of the Scandinavian royals delighted in sharing what he learned with anyone who would listen. He had taken to sneaking into the study in whichever palace they were at, and curling up on a sofa as he listened to his parents debate the merits of whatever treaty or declaration or bill they were looking over. He also delighted in being by the sea much more than his siblings did, and it was common for Elsa to see her husband and oldest son return to Halsten from their time on the beach, often carrying their shoes and whatever else they had managed to find during their excursion. The boy had even started expressing interest in joining the Southern Isles Navy, or even the Arendellian Navy when he got older- something that made both his parents exceedingly uncomfortable, and they promised to consider it when he got older.
"Do you think you could?" Everyone turned to Albert, confused.
"Albert, what are you talking about? Who could what?" Victoria asked as her husband glanced at her. But before he could speak, Elsa set her cup down and stood, hand going to her mouth. Everyone else quickly stood, the other adults immediately concerned. Hans reached for her, worry filling his green eyes.
"Excuse me, please."
"Eliza, are you-" She turned to him.
"It's just... this sickness." She reached up, caressing his cheek. "Nothing... unusual... I dealt with it with... the other children..." She stopped, swallowing thickly. "I will deal with it with... this one. It will subside eventually."
"Do you want me to come with you?"
"Stay. I'll be fine. I just need to lie down." She turned to the others. "Please excuse me, Victoria, Albert, I'm-" She covered her mouth again, and the British royals nodded.
"Of course, Elsa! I dealt with it last year; I understand. Go on, go rest. We'll see you later in the evening." Victoria had given birth to her last child, Princess Beatrice, whom the family called Baby, in April. Beatrice was the last of Albert and Victoria's children, and the queen doted on the eight-month old more than she did any of her other children. The Scandinavian Queen nodded, then hurried from the room. After a moment, Anna stood, nodding to Victoria and Albert before hurrying after her sister. Anna had, since starting to learn the practice of midwifery, been Elsa's constant companion since the announcement of her latest pregnancy, and had taken to watching over her sister even more than normal, for it seemed that the queen's symptoms were even more severe that they had been with her six previous pregnancies.
"Lise, wait-" Once the Arendellian sisters were gone, everyone returned to their seats, lapping into silence for several moments.
"Auntie will be okay, won't she, Uncle Hans?" Vicky asked, concerned. He reached over, gently patting her hand.
"Or course she will be, Vicky." Normal conversation slowly returned, before Victoria finally decided to go check on the younger woman, excusing herself quietly. Once the women were gone, Albert turned to Hans.
"Do you think you would be able to?"
"Able too what, Albert?"
"Get Elsa to kiss you under the mistletoe."
He'd been trying all night to catch her under the mistletoe he'd managed to get a hold of, but she was difficult to keep in one place. After a few hours of rest, Elsa was able to join everyone for dinner and the Christmas ball- and that included stepping out onto the balcony to greet the people. To the people, it was treat, to see the Scandinavian Royals step out with their royal family; over the last several years, the British people had fallen as in love with the Scandinavian Royals as their own royal family had- rumors of a possible betrothal between the young Crown Princess and the Prince of Wales ran rampant, and bets were placed to whether or not young Princess Alice and Prince Christian would also be betrothed when they got older, both being close in age. It was suggested still that the Scandinavian King and Queen were having not only a passionate, secret affair, but that they were also having a passionate, secret affair with the Queen and Prince Consort- something both families still found quite laughable.
When they'd gone out to tour London earlier in the week, it had been noted that the Arendellian queen appeared to have a small yet noticeable swell beneath her dress, and it set tongues wagging. Speculation began to arise, suggesting that the queen was carrying the king's child, forcing an even stronger claim that the children were the queen's with the king's-and why didn't they admit to their affair? Surely the people would accept it, especially once they realized how happy their monarchs seemed together?
But the Arendellian Queen neither confirmed nor denied the swell beneath her dress, nor her relationship with the king; they stayed a respectable distance apart, the British couple between them. During dinner, they stuck to polite conversation, and it was only during the ball that they returned to each other. Both looked breath-taking; Hans was dashing in a simple dark suit which brought out the auburn of his hair, while Elsa stunned in a gown crafted of her ice. The crinoline dress had an off-the- shoulder sweetheart neckline, the ice it was made of resembling satin, and was a beautiful deep blue, overlaid with layers of ice that resembled white tulle. The dress was decorated in a pattern of beautiful snowflakes, the tulle-like ice fading to near transparency by the time it reached the bottom of the skirt, and the short, puffed sleeves were also covered in tulle-like ice; Elsa had allowed the girls to gather her long, thick, luxurious hair- that had grown even longer and thicker since she'd told her family of her pregnancy- up into a thick, elaborate braid that wrapped twice around her head before hanging down her back. Delicate snowflakes that resembled hairpins were nestled in her hair, appearing to cascade through the braid towards the floor. The look seemed to be a variation of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, except the Arendellian Queen was even more stunning, looking like something out of a children's fairy story.
She had stunned the court when she entered on the Hans' arm, and it was evident that her unofficial title of 'The Snow Queen' was lived up to in the gown. Because it was the Christmas season, the older children were allowed to join the ball, and all four of the Scandinavian royal children looked as stunning as their parents. When Victoria insisted they join them on the balcony to greet the people, Elsa had to be convinced, and it was the excitement of the children that finally convinced her.
The two couples stood together, Hans and Albert both on the outside, their wives on the inside, with Anna between Victoria and Elsa, as the children excitedly waved to the crowd. Soft conversation passed between the two couples, until finally, Hans leaned towards her. "It's almost as though the people are more excited to seeus than they are to see their own royal family."
She turned her head slightly with a soft hum, before what he said really penetrated her brain, and she turned halfway to face him. "Wait, what-"
But his lips were soon on hers; the kiss was chaste, yet searching and deep at the same time. They were slow to part, to the cheers of the crowd, and the others on the balcony turned to see what the commotion was about. Victoria chuckled softly, glancing at Anna and then Albert, all unaware of the crack of flashbulbs as cameras froze the moment forever in time.