lost princess is lost

Hedwig scrolled Twitter on her phone while sipping on a glass of champagne. It was a little flat, but better than nothing. She had texted Ollie to see if she was free (she probably wasn’t) and decided to wait around by a window with a beautiful view of the courtyard. From the other end of the hallway, she heard a couple of official-sounding voices. Her French was rusty, but did they just say--? Springing to attention, Hedwig gathered up her skirt and started to make her way back to her room. Absolute panic had her seeing white. The outline of another person coming around the corner caused her to stop, her breath gone. “Have you--heard--there has been a kidnapping?” she asked the woman. Her vision was blurry but she looked like Julia Lauridsen, who would surely know if something bad was happening. Right?

Hedwig stepped out into the hallway after checking on her mother. The night had certainly brought out the knives between her mother and Aunt Gisela, and Hedwig felt as if she was playing referee to a boxing match up until dinner. She could not even discern what they were fighting about, other than her mother being appalled at Gisela’s “attitude.” Ugh. Knowing that Ollie’s beau would be around, and that Aaron would be no help, Hedwig did her best to keep them separated the rest of the evening.

Which meant she had zero fun. She checked her phone for the time and sighed heavily as she walked, a bit aimlessly, to try and find the... after party? Surely there was one. With her head angled down at her phone, she didn’t notice someone had appeared in front of her. “Oh!” she squeaked, stumbling backward, catching her dress under her shoe, and then tumbling all the way to the floor along with a vase. She stared at the broken vase and looked up to see Theo standing over her. And immediately burst into tears.

Sometimes in royal circles creating a ‘friendship’ was tantamount to drawing up treaties. But he certainly did not mind building a reciprocal connection with Hedwig which did not rely on boundaries and trade agreements. “That is very kind of you. I do not mind FaceTime, calls, or whatever is preferred. Even early in the morning.” Theo really didn’t mind and hoped the message had been conveyed. 

A friendly face who didn’t need anything official from the prince of Denmark would also be welcomed at the summit. A break from mundane talks and presentations. His smile turned somewhat sly. “I have to admit, I do remember dancing.” Remarkably. He recalled too the massive hangover the day after. “A proper one would be nice, I’ll take you up on it.”

“There will be time for other things. It will not be all business. I do not know you very well, but I would like to.” Aside from a BTS fan, who was Hedwig? Obviously they passed each other on the island as empty royal shells of themselves. The environment forged relationships in the heat of tension and fear. Extreme stress, not knowing if one would ever see their family again. Theo returned home different. Surely Hedwig did too. 

“The Danish court is very relaxed. After the summit we will be able to do what we want. I will show you around, we can talk and learn more about each other.” An odd offer from a former playboy and soon to be king. But, well. Stranger things had happened. “My chief of staff will send yours all the information and make arrangements for you this afternoon. And I will see you soon.” 

-

Hedwig was mortified when Theo admitted he remembered dancing at the afterparty. Why she thought he had forgotten was a mystery--she had been the one drunk, not the prince. Hedwig clung to the hope that maybe something more interesting had happened to Theo that night than dancing with a princess like her. Her eyes widened at the news but she quickly controlled the uptick in her heart rate with a quick breath in and out. There wasn’t anything she could do about that, and if her dancing had bothered Theo, he would have said so. Probably.

She had the chance to prove that she knew other styles of dancing besides drunken, uh, grinding? Or whatever she’d done. Hedwig’s head nodded along with the idea of a proper dance and everything Theo detailed about the summit in Denmark. 

Like a bobblehead, just nodding and nodding, excitement bubbling up into a wide smile. Theo was so warm and kind. Had he not been genuine, Hedwig wouldn’t have been able to tell a difference. “Yes! It is a date! --On my calendar!” she added quickly. “See you soon, Theo!”

(Hey, it’s a multi-day event...)

No, King Aren likely wasn’t in his pajamas, as much as prince Aaron had been. The days of Theo sleeping in would be over soon enough as well. What a nightmare. 

Hedwig fidgeted around, the phone still shaky in her hand. Maybe he shouldn’t be piling on directions. “Visit a children’s hospital and the press will back off for at least six months. Or, ah. Do you have any interests like that? Something you would like to support and raise awareness for? It should be genuine, of course.” 

A young princess suddenly under scrutiny, pushed to lead in a way she had not expected. Keeping up appearances. Much of it sounded familiar. “I do not think you are trashy and I doubt anyone else does either.” Rose colored her cheeks, her neck. Hedwig was so soft, so sweet. So unaware– and Theo felt a worry in his chest for her. 

Hedwig could so easily be taken advantage of. Especially with the way the world had turned after the island. His thoughts showed in his expression. “You have not disrupted anything.” He needed to wake up, drink some water. Down a cocktail of ibuprofen and black coffee. “Our countries are allies, Hedwig. More importantly, I consider you a friend. You can always call me.” 

And Theo’s hangover was begging him not to get too personal. However, he felt as though he should. “I will one day be leading Denmark. It was unexpected, I was not groomed my entire life to do so as my brother Kennet had been. It is… it is confusing. Frightening. At times I lose sleep over it. What has helped me is to surround myself with knowledgable staff who I trust. My father has… had a lot to deal with and unable to give me much guidance. And so I decided to educate myself. I am not the best at asking for help, but in a situation like this it is very important not to let pride get in the way of doing so. Do not be hard on yourself. Running a country does not happen over night.” 

Or over a life time, from what he had witnessed. His head ached and felt stuffed with cotton. Theo wasn’t sure if he was making sense. “There will be an economic summit in Copenhagen in a few months. Many leaders and government agencies are sending representatives. Some monarchs are intending to come as well. I would like for you to be my guest, if you are able to. I think it would be helpful and provide an opportunity to learn quite a bit.” 

A quick smile. A hand raked through his hair as he caught the image of himself in the corner of his phone. “Reporters will not be allowed in. In case you would like to dance again.” In Theo’s state it took a few seconds to realize how the comment could be construed. “Although dancing is not mandatory. To be completely honest, it would be nice to have dinner with someone besides myself. If you would like. Perhaps there will more questions I can answer in person.” 

-

Hedwig’s expression softened into a small frown as Theo opened up about his own situation. The expectations had to be suffocating on top of the great loss to his family. Pirates had really taken so much from them. In a way, even after the island, Theo’s freedom was permanently stolen. 

Friend. More than the awkward mentions of unflattering headlines did the word friend bring a rush of color to her whole face. The lack of friends in her life had always been painfully obvious. She considered her cousin and her mother to be the only reliable support. Fellow musicians in the symphony had reached out to her, invited her to get togethers, but she often felt like a wallflower. Always an outsider to the tight knit groups that formed around certain sections. She played harp, by herself, and sat next to percussionists, who recently were a bit too... wild for her tastes. Or at least that’s what she told herself when the invitations to hang out stopped.

She only knew royals through headlines, sometimes Aaron and Ollie, but rarely at official events. Her life outside of all of that never felt empty until now when she had to properly “network”, the thought of which made her feel a little sick. Sincerity was hard to exude when she learned everyone’s names and faces on flashcards with biographical facts attached. All of that after meeting so many for the first time on the island, of all places.

“I also consider you a friend. Please know that you can always talk to me. I may not have the best advice when it comes to ruling a country, but I can lend an ear if you ever need to talk. I know how lonely it can be... When you’re so busy, I mean. And we do not have to be on FaceTime,” she added with a grin.

Hedwig knew her whole face and her ears were red, but there was nothing she could do to hide it in the mostly white background of her bathroom. “Yes! I would love that, Theo,” she replied with more enthusiasm than she intended. Had she shouted? Yes. The past few seconds felt like a blur, had she even heard him correctly? He mentioned dancing. Her smile was so wide it prevented her from speaking right away. “We should dance because I barely remember the last dance, and I couldn’t bring myself to look at the photos for more than a second. This time it will be proper. I will not be drunk.”

And dinner. As friends. “Oh, thank you, Theo. You have already helped me out so much. I appreciate your help. I won’t pick your brain every time we have to talk. That should be Aaron’s job. Maybe we can talk about other things, too.” She sighed. “If we have time for other things.” Theo probably knew what she was talking about, or at least she hoped so. 

Boat was an odd choice of words, and Malle wasn’t the best at hiding her thoughts. Her head quirked to the side slightly. She almost smiled. And then, for a long moment, she listened.

The idea that she had any of it sorted enough to give advice was laughable, to her. Malle felt like the polar opposite of stability; a thinly-connected set of wants and needs, power and compromise. Everything, from her reign to her marriage to her being, really, had happened only on the narrowest of chances.

Well.

A pert exhale and a nod. It was easy to divert into nuance, to stress over the minutiae. To harp on a small point that she made, like the bloody gender of her staff. Malle felt that pressure keenly.

“The most important thing,” I think, she would have caveated in a past life. “Is to remember that you are in control. That their successes may be lauded and praised as their own, but their mistakes will ultimately fall on your shoulders. So the responsibility – and the power – lies with you.”

She set her tea cup down, considering her next words carefully. “It is nice to consider their opinions, and to acknowledge their expertise.” Dark brown eyes looked up to meet hers, calm. “It is not necessary to convince them of your opinion, or explain it.”

It was simple to say, she knew. It felt simple then. It was harder to do. Malle tried to soften it with a smile.

“And if they do not care to listen when you speak, remove them.”

-

Hedwig found herself thrust into a position of power in a matter of hours. Grandmama tried to prepare her for months, ever since the return from the island sans Louis, but Hedwig had fooled herself into thinking that the inevitable turnover of the crown to her would never happen. She wasn’t worthy of it, hadn’t even grown up in Luxembourg. Surely Louis would turn up. Surely Grandmama would appoint a new heir, one of her cousins, perhaps.

The princess focused herself on the present company and conversation. Malle spoke with a certain air of authority, but her voice was soft. The choice of words was not. Remove them. “You mean f-fire them?”

Hedwig blinked a couple of times before nodding her head with a bit of resolve. She’d never fired anyone before. Could someone else do it? Her chief of staff. No, he had to go, too. She felt a little panicked, at first, but no one was forcing her to make the call right this second. It was the right choice though.

“My cabinet is--they are more flexible, that is good, they are also very knowledgeable, and in some ways I don’t think they care who--uhm, maybe they did not like working with Grandmama in Louis’s absence. They speak of him often. They miss him, I think, but they seem to like me well enough.” Removing a member of the cabinet would take a political feat. Rearranging her personal staff and advisors should be a cake walk.

“Thank you, Queen Margaret, I think I just needed to hear it from someone else. Since I cannot ask the advisors I want to, uhm, fire.” A small smile, then she took a sip of tea, which had gotten a bit cold after a few minutes of neglect. “How is married life treating you?”

Were you there?

Valko smirked. If only. The modest pile of melon stars on his plate grew substantially when he spooned her portion over. Not exactly fine manners, but when had that ever stopped the crown prince. He popped another melon piece in his mouth, and slid her plate back. His expression settled back into something a little more neutral at the prospect of spending an entire day together.

“Sure, yeah. Tomorrow. Sounds like a blast.” He was counting on his sister being better by tomorrow, or so help him. Not that little mouse was terrible company. She’d shared her melons after all. He just didn’t want to end up buried in the tulips.

“Tell me more about this mimosa stylist. Can they fit us in this afternoon?” Mimosas. Mimosas.

While he didn’t doubt the stylists of the Bulgarian court spent their days downing glasses of rakia, Valko found himself wanted a mimose stylist instead. The sheer novelty would be just what his father’s palace needed. This was going to be the best part of the trip.

“I’m thinking it’s time to do something… dramatic,” he added, flipping his hair back. “You ever think about a changing it up? I’m pretty handy with a pair of scissors. I could cut hair.”

-

“This afternoon? Perhaps, I will ask.” Hedwig tapped a quick text on her phone. “I’m not really an expert at what her other services are.” That sounded... weird. “I mean, I just get haircuts. I think there is someone who ‘does’ eyebrows? And facials. And nails, I know my grandmother goes quite often for manicures.”

Hedwig stared at Valko as he stated he wanted to do something dramatic while flipping his hair as if on a shampoo commercial. Did Hedwig ever think about changing it up? “Uhh,” she answered stupidly as Valko went on to claim he could cut hair. “Yes?” Maybe it was a need to encourage Valko to do what he wanted to do, “something dramatic”, that compelled her to agree for herself.

Her phone buzzed. “Oh! Yes, the salon can get us both in this afternoon. With mimosas.”

“I did dye my hair black once. Maybe I could do that again. It was certainly dramatic. Or maybe another color like... red.” Now she was just talking out loud. Maybe a hair color change would be better. Anything but dull blonde? “What do you think, Valko?”