In the Royal Bedroom

The morning sun streamed in. There was a soft knock at the door.

"Your Majesty, you rang?" Kai asked as he cautiously opened the door, coming in further only when he saw the queen dressed and sitting on the edge of the bed facing the door.

"Do you know if the council members are still in town?"

"I believe so, Your Majesty. One or two might be at country estates, but not very far."

"Good. Could you please see that they're summoned in the next few days? We would like to discuss some possible changes to the succession. Let them think we'll be changing the regency clause if that will get them here faster."

"Very well, Your Majesty. Will that be all this morning?"

"Yes, thank you," she said as the steward exited and closed the door behind him.

"You're up early," Kristoff said, emerging from the covers on the other side of the bed.

"I can't sleep much lately, anyway," she said, "and you know, you didn't have to hide, I think he's seen worse by now."

"It was an excuse to sleep a few more minutes. Why aren't you sleeping?"

"Just some heartburn. The midwife was saying it's a sign that the baby will have a lot of hair."

"Really?"

"I don't know. She says a lot of things," she paused, "so, how was that dinner last night?"

"I ended up getting cornered by the ambassador from Corona, because apparently we don't allow Inga to make any decisions on her own, and they are extending an invitation for her to attend the upcoming coronation."

"And what did you tell him?"

"That you need to make that decision."

She put her hand on his arm and gave him a teasing glare.

"Come here," he said, gently pulling her down, "if you're going to have a council meeting this week, you need to rest now." She rested her head on his chest, looking at his face.

"It might be a day or two while he finds everyone. I said they wouldn't like their vacation interrupted. I think one of them even has a retreat on an island out there. He'll be difficult to find. Are you hungry?"

"I thought you said you had heartburn."

"Only at night. And I asked you."

"I wouldn't mind some breakfast," he said, reaching over for the rope to ring the bell.

"When do you think I should ask Elsa to visit?" Anna asked after a minute.

"You would know that better than I would."

"I told you, though, I really don't know how long it's going to be. Not right away, of course. But it could be a few weeks."

There was another knock at the door. This time Gerda peeked in.

"Something to eat, Your Majesty?"

"Yes, thank you, for both of us."

The door closed again.

Kristoff stroked her hair.

"Maybe I'll let her decide," she sighed.

"She'll assume something is wrong, and I wouldn't blame her. That's worse than just telling her to come. If you want to see her sooner, invite her."

She sighed.

"Really," Kristoff continued, "if you tell her not to come yet, she's going to worry. So I think the answer is pretty obvious."

The doorknob was rattling, and they heard a faint tapping on the door.

"Mama! Mama!"

"It's Karl, could you let him in?" Anna said as she slowly sat herself upright.

Kristoff got up and grabbed his robe and put it on while he walked to the door.

"Mama!" Karl yelled as he ran in to the bed.

"I suppose Nanny was busy getting breakfast, but you can eat with us," Anna said as he quickly climbed into bed with her to cuddle.

Kristoff checked the hallway for anyone else before closing the door and going into the bathroom. When he came back out a few minutes later, he was dressed for the day. Karl was nestled against Anna and nursing.

"Should he be doing that?" Kristoff asked.

"It's perfectly safe, even the doctor didn't see any harm in it, and the little guy definitely needed some comforting."

Breakfast arrived. Karl didn't want to move.

"Hey, let's get you some bread and jam," Anna said, gently detaching him. She went over to the small table by the window and sat down. Karl went over and pulled at her while she spread some jam on a slice of bread and handed it to him. He stuffed it in his mouth greedily as Kristoff picked him up and sat him on his lap across the table.

Another knock at the door.

"Nanny, is that you?" Anna called out.

"Yes, Your Majesty," she said, opening the door slightly, "did Karl come in there?"

"Yes, he's having breakfast with us. Are the girls having breakfast with you?"

"They are, Your Majesty. Would you like me to come for Karl in a few minutes?"

"Actually," Kristoff interrupted, "I think I'll take him for a ride a little later."

"Very well, Your Highness," she replied, and slightly bowing as she closed the door, "Your Majesty."

"It does look like another nice day," Anna said wistfully, "I am starting to feel kind of trapped."

"Do you want to go out to the garden again this afternoon?"

"Not if it's an inconvenience," she said.

"If I see Inga, I'll send her up here to keep you company for a while."

"Only if she's not busy, I don't want to impose on her," she said, "but that would be nice."

"Oh, and, just as a warning, when I brought up the succession issue, she… kind of… jumped to conclusions…"

"What do you mean by that?"

"She seemed to think we were trying to arrange a marriage for her?"

"Um… I hope you told her we're doing no such thing."

"Of course, of course… and it's a good thing, too, since I got the idea that the Corona invitation was presented to her as a pretty blatant move for something like that…"

"Why would they do that? There must have been some misunderstanding. I mean, some kingdoms, yes, they take one look at the children and think they're nothing but commodities…"

"Well, maybe talk to her…" he suggested as Karl was wiggling back to the floor.

"And, what?"

"I don't know, you were a sixteen-year-old girl once, weren't you?"

"That's… not helpful," she said, watching as Karl climbed onto the bed and began jumping.

"Maybe it's something she's been reading?" He winked.

"The Hanging Gardens…"

"What gardens?"

"The Hanging Gardens of Babylon. She was telling me about it when she was just starting to read through the Greek and Latin books in the library. The gardens were built for a princess who was sent away from her mountainous kingdom to live in the desert…"

"Is that what she's been reading?" Kristoff asked, as he caught Karl mid jump.

"Just be glad it wasn't Oedipus Rex," she laughed, "Actually, no, she probably has read that, but I don't think she'd want to talk to us about it."

"Should I read that?"

"Well, our copy is in Greek…"

"You know, I've heard people translate books sometimes…"

Kristoff assisted Karl in doing several flips on the bed as he giggled wildly.

"Maybe it's time to take him on that ride you were promising."

"Good idea," he said, scooping up the boy, "let's go!"

"Bye, love!" Anna said as her husband kissed her on the lips, "and you, too, Kristoff."

Anna sat at the table looking out over the courtyard, watching them head over to the stables. He saw them come out, mounted on Sven, as they trotted off out the gates.

The door creaked open.

"Mama?" Inga asked, "I saw Papa when he was heading outside. He said you might like some company."

"Only if you aren't busy."

"Of course not," she said as she sat down at the small table and got herself a slice of bread and spread some butter on it.

"I heard that the ambassador from Corona spoke to you last night," Anna said cautiously.

"Yes," she said finishing a bite of her bread,"it was rather ham-fisted, if you ask me."

"Your father got that idea."

"Oh, I didn't see him nearby, was I that loud?"

"I really don't know, just that the ambassador came to him after speaking to you."

"I'm not sorry for that. What did Papa say?"

"He told him it was my decision. And I'll leave it up to you, but at least you can be honest with me. You really won't offend me. I remember that ambassador from years ago when he was younger."

"Really? He's been here before?"

"Yes, but you wouldn't remember. You had just turned two years old. I had left a ball a bit suddenly because I… wasn't feeling well. I guess your father followed me out without excusing himself from a conversation."

"He did strike me as a bit self-important…"

"Most of them are, I'm afraid," Anna said sipping her tea.

Inga glanced out at the courtyard deep in thought.

"That ambassador's secretary seems nice enough," she said, still looking outside.

"Oh? Your father seemed to like him, too, though he seemed to think he can't exactly keep secrets."

"Well that's probably true," she laughed.

"Why? What did you learn?"

"The Crown Princess seems to think she knows you. And they visited here twenty years ago? You've never mentioned that."

"Oh… I'm surprised she'd… I mean I'm not surprised. Of course she was here."

"We figured she was just being polite," Inga said, adding flippantly, "I can't imagine someone would have actually enjoyed their time here then…"

Anna looked at her daughter.

"Sorry, Mama," Inga said quickly, looking down at her lap.

"No, just… don't worry about it," her mother said, as she began pouring herself another cup of tea. "By the way, I'm going to be inviting Elsa to visit soon."

"Oh, I'm glad to hear that," Inga replied quickly, "does this mean you think the baby is coming soon?"

"I don't know about that, you really all come and go when you want, don't you?" Anna teased.

Inga rolled her eyes but smiled a little. She had heard more than a few visitors grumbling about the children left to run wild through the castle, as well as one or two tutors and governesses who didn't stay for long. None of the complaints were ever about any of the things that actually bothered her about her family.

She wished they would keep their thoughts to themselves, of course, and she certainly wished that they would remember that just airing their thoughts in French didn't give them any secrecy. She and her siblings might be undisciplined, but they heard and understood the whispers about "les petits sauvages" all the same. The visiting diplomats knew better than to say anything around her mother. The first time she heard someone say it, she was standing with her father. She didn't quite understand the implications, because she was still young, but she was in the habit of helpfully translating everything for her father when official guests would slip into speaking French. He told her to ask them to repeat what they said for him, and the men grew very uncomfortable.

She had been staring at the town for a while. She realized she hadn't had anything to drink, and poured herself a cup of tea.

"You don't have to decide right now," her mother said, "but at some point I'll need to give the ambassador an answer about the coronation invitation."

"Maybe if Frederick can come," she replied, "I don't know. I don't want to go by myself, or just myself and a chaperone. I know a chaperone of some sort would be expected."

"Do you think he'd really want to go?"

"He said last night he'd like a trip, but I'm not sure how serious he was."

"I don't know. If you think he'd actually behave himself...he'll still be fourteen then, and you'll be seventeen. It's a big difference."

"But you think I'd have been better at fourteen, don't you?"

"I didn't say that," her mother said quickly.

"But you and Papa were thinking it."

"Oh, well, that was his idea, but I thought he had some good points. We are going to bring the council in this week, if Kai can find them all. I mean, unless you really don't want to, but I do think you should consider it."

"That's what Papa said, too," she sighed, "and I told him, I guess I should be grateful. I'm just afraid that Fred is going to resent me for it. I mean, I understand why he'd want it this way, I really do."

"I'm sorry we brought it up so suddenly. He does get worried, you know, and I can't blame him for that…"

"But you'd tell me if there was anything… anything in particular to worry about right now, right?"

Her mother looked at her and nodded. Inga decided she needed another slice of bread, this time with extra butter and jam.