Tulips

Chapter 1

The carriage jolted. Adelaide held her hand to the windowpane steadying herself, the glass was smooth and cool, not yet warmed from the morning sun. They drove past the rows of flowers, vibrant fields of yellows, reds, and purples. Adelaide sat straight on the upholstery, the skirt of her light-yellow gown surrounding her legs. She stared forward, thinking of what waited her at the end of the road. The scenery outside quickly morphed to green trees, thriving from the fair April weather. She shuffled towards the window, glimpsing at the end of the forest lined path was their destination. The carriage turned. The windows now faced the palace, the wheels stopped with a crunch on the pebbled ground. Standing in front of the large front entrance was her friend Gwendolyn, stood waiting on her arrival. A footman opened the door of carriage, a breeze of cool air hitting Adelaide's face. She climbed down and smiled at her friend, which was met by a stern frown. What's wrong with her?

"Her royal highness Adelaide Orléans of Normandy, Duchess of Jersey." The footman heralded. Adelaide walked towards her friend, offering her arms for an embrace. Gwendolyn welcomed her in, face still unchanged.

"Three weeks doesn't count as fashionably late," she whispered, her face transforming into a grin.

"Fuck you," Adelaide retorted quietly.

They walked side by side through the narrow corridors, laughing and chatting, glad to see each other after the short separation.

"I wanted to spend some time with my parents, it felt cruel to rush off and leave them all alone. And it's nice to be home, familiar surroundings and such" Adelaide said.

"Familiar is just another way of saying boring," Gwendolyn added receiving a light slap on the arm from her insulted friend.

"You have to admit home turf is nice every once in a while, seeing as we are currently walking through said home"

"It's nice sometimes," she admitted.

They arrived at Adelaide's apartments and sat down on the sitting rooms powder blue chairs. The room was freshly dusted. 'The Normandy Suite' was printed on the outside of the door, Most countries in Europe had an assigned set of rooms in the Dutch palace, it was nice to be kept in the apartments each visit, Adelaide had always thought. A maid brought through tea and an assortment of confectionary for the girls.

"The Russians, were the first to arrive," Gwendolyn informed her.

"Did you cope?" Adelaide asked, sneering. Gwen and Adelaide had an ongoing feud with the Princess Mary. Some would say it was unjustified, but Mary was a bore at the best of times.

"Hardly," she adjusted her mousy brown hair, "I do wonder sometimes if Mary actively aspires to being dull,"

"Her conversation skills do seem to be lacking in many, many areas,"

"And the thing is Nicholai is so sweet and charming," Gwen said. Adelaide hid a smile behind her cup. "I guess scandal does that to a person,"

It was commonly discussed by the royals of Europe the parentage of Lord Nicholai. The Tzar's brother had taken a diplomatic trip south to the Chinese Empire and reappeared a year later with a son. The rest of the Russian royals had never recognised Nicholai's existence, although his father had named him a Baron, that seemed like the extent of the love felt for his illegitimate son. Born disgraced and raised without any clarity of identity, Nicholai had been on the path to disappearing into the table of Russian nobility. Until the rotating party of young royals heard of him and he was invited to join the party. He was liked by the crowd because he was interesting, obscure, mysterious. All these things were fortified by his amiable nature.

"Is Louis here?" Adelaide asked, changing the conversation.

"Yes," Gwendolyn answered, "You two have never really gotten to know each much, have you?"

Adelaide shook her head.

"It's a pity, August and I think you would get along well,"

Louis had always been an aloof entity for Adelaide, her best friend's brother's best friend, she was surprised Gwen hadn't already made a scheming bid for their union. Adelaide shrugged. She looked around the room, there was a new rug on the floor and the door had been painted since her last visit.

The girls continued chatting for a while. Eventually, Gwendolyn left, and Adelaide prepared for dinner.