Embers in a Crystal Storm

by Ziva- Zia- Z

Two kingdoms ruled by married monarchs separated by a sea would not outlast those kingdoms that came before. It didn't matter he had loved her the moment they met. Everything was against them- a marriage built on such major differences could not last- but they were determined; they would rewrite the story, even if they had to rewrite the stars to make sure their story was told.

93. Chapter 93

Rifiuto: Non Mirena

1908,

The Garden of Linnea Castle,

Arendelle

"Wait... Liesel died?" Grandfather nodded, sadness in his gaze. "But... but... wait, so she died of typhoid, right?"

Oh Sasha, my darling boy, how... optimistic you are... "It wasn't typhoid, Sasha."

"Then what was it?"

"Scarlet fever." His voice was soft, choked with tears, as he spoke, those two words hanging heavy in the silence.

"But... but that... that only affects children-"

"It is most commonly known to affect only children, yes, but you must remember, Sasha, that this was the late eighteen-fifties. Medicine was not as advanced now as it was then. They could not fight it as effectively as we can now. And you must understand, that Liesel had always been a slightly sickly child. She was much more prone to illness than the other children."

"But-"

"It was rumored back then, after the princess's death, that perhaps she was like the queen."

"Like the queen? How?"

"Of course she was like the queen, she was her daughter-"

"They thought she had ice powers?" Pia's soft question cut through everything else, as Grandfather turned to her.

"Rumors began to circulate among the court that the princess had possibly inherited the queen's powers, but because they had not manifested upon her birth, that that was the reason for her weakened immune system."

"You mean similar to the young Tsarevich in Russia?" Vicky asked, as everyone turned to Thyra, who kept quiet.

"Perhaps. It's speculated now that the young princess was most likely a carrier of the same genes that gave the queen her magic, but instead of them manifesting as powers, they manifested themselves in other ways. That, if the princess had lived, grown up, married and given birth to a child, she very well may have passed the magic onto her offspring."

"So she would have been a carrier?" A soft nod. "That's..."

"Heartbreaking." Thyra whispered; she knew the rumors swirling around court that the young Tsarevich was sickly, and that the Tsarina was dependent on the strange mystic named Rasputin to heal her son- "The king and queen, how did they react upon hearing of the death of the princess?"

Grandfather met her gaze, seeing the look in her eyes. "It did not go well."

"It was bad?"

"The queen had just given birth unexpectedly to twins; what should have been a joyous occasion for celebration was darkened by the doctor having to inform them of their daughter's passing. The king and queen were forced to accept that their family was no longer as whole as it had once been."

He remembered the screams that had escaped the queen, stronger than any ever brought about by childbirth. The princess had managed to delay informing her sister and brother-in-law by a few days, saying that they needed time to adjust to parenthood again, but those few days had done more harm than good.

"Where is my daughter? Annalise, tell me where my daughter is."

"Lise, I... I'm so sorry, but Liesel..."

"No... you're... you're lying! Hans! Dr. Ibsen!" The sight of the queen, only a few days after having given birth to twins, stumbling from the bed into the king's arms, had startled everyone. "I demand you bring my daughter to me! Bring Liesel to me! Now! I am your queen, you do as I command! And I command that you bring Princess Elisabeth to me! Bring her to me!"

"Your Majesty, I'm... sorry, but I can't..." The doctor's tear-choked voice had been the catalyst needed to break the monarch in that moment; her cries morphing into screams of pain as her knees buckled and she and the king crumpled to the floor.

"Despite the birth of the Queen's twins, the princess's death had thrown the entire country into mourning. It was this... strange dichotomy, celebrating life while they mourned death. In those months following, the king had informed his council of the developments and that he would stay by the queen's side to provide comfort and support in this time. No one was any the wiser that he had remained to mourn his child as well."

Silence fell as everyone let this saddening turn in the story take hold. "But... but the king and queen had twins, didn't they? Surely they had them to focus on-" Vicky stopped, biting her lip. "What were their names, 'papa? The twins that the queen gave birth to?"

He glanced at the current queen, tears clogging his throat, unsure of how best to explain the situation. Oh my darling, did you really think-