Stupid Luck and Happenstance, Thread II
- Thread starter Peabody-Martini
- Start date
I kind of imagine the Dudley Moore character in Bedazzled working a grill at cheap burger joint in full view of people on the streets.
Kristina and I believe Victoria are Orthodox and when Kira had the assassination attempt against her, it was at the Orthodox Cathedral where all three daughters was attending the services.
For the sons I would presume that they have been raised in the Evangelical Christian Church as they are in the direct line for the throne.
Growing up they were encouraged to be pragmatic about what the public sees about their religious beliefs. As Crown Prince, Friedrich has to be seen as Evangelical while his brother Michael is King of predominately Catholic Bohemia. Kiki was raised Orthodox by her Russian mother. Louis Junior is following his oldest brother's lead. Victoria tends to bounce around from religion to religion. Marie is mostly agnostic.
Part 97, Chapter 1530
Chapter One Thousand Five Hundred Thirty
31st December 1962
Mitte, Berlin
The Grand Ballroom was lit up with brilliant multi-colored lights and the scene was like something from another century. Louis knew that of his ancestors with the exception of those who had been warriors in the Medieval period, would have been perfectly at home here. Louis was playing to role of host as they counted down the remaining minutes of 1962.
The reaction that Louis got when he returned to the Winter Residence was a reminder that he was counting down the days when he would no longer be Emperor. Everything that had happened in his absence over the prior week needed to be addressed that instant. When the day came that all of that was someone else’s problem was going to be welcome. Charlotte had asked him what he would do with himself. Louis had said that his grandfather had gone fishing in Gulf of Mexico with General von Wolvogle. Then they had gone to Samoa. When she had said that she had a hard time imagining him doing that Louis had said that he would think of something.
Spending the Christmas Holiday at the Castle had been a welcome retreat, but now everyone needed to go back to their lives. In Louis’ case, he needed to be present to host the royal New Year’s Ball in Berlin, Freddy and Suga were expected to be present as well. The announcement of their impending marriage saw to it that all eyes would be on them. Everyone knew that barring misadventure Freddy would be Friedrich the IV of Germany in only a decade and he was an apprentice of sorts presently. In addition to attending Law School, he was being seen in public with increasing frequency acting as his father’s proxy.
It should have been no surprise that Kristina was going back to the boat she had moored behind the War Museum. It would probably be to her dismay that security at the museum had been markedly increased in her absence. There was also no guarantee that she wouldn’t just cast off and go somewhere else up or down the river. Louis wasn’t worried too much though. She was supposed to report back to FSR in a few weeks and would need to come to a determination about her future. Even if it was to learn that they were giving her the boot, Kiki would still show up for it. She had always taken obligations seriously.
For Louis though, it had been nice to see that his oldest daughter had a life beyond the FSR or Medical Service. Extending the invitation to Benjamin Hirsch had been Charlotte’s idea. To get a measure of the boy, was how she put it, what wasn’t on paper. The son of a Chemistry Professor, Ben had met Kiki when she had lived across the alleyway at Katherine von Mischner’s house. These days when Ben wasn’t a student at the University of Berlin, he was a Reserve Officer in the Luftwaffe. That last part was something that Louis approved of. He had mentioned that he had been trying to volunteer for the Space Program. A glance at his record had revealed to Louis that Ben had come in just shy of induction into the Order of the Pour le Mérite, something that would advance his application.
The misgiving that Louis did have with Benjamin was that his middle-class background and how he was completely unfamiliar royal protocol that was bloody serious business. As much as Kiki tried to reject that, she took to it like breathing because it was a part of who she was. Charlotte thought that Louis was being a bit of a snob. Her perspective was that, yes, Ben was a commoner, but he probably wouldn’t be forever at the rate he was going. He would a Ritter at least if ever made it into orbit. The real question if he was a good fit for Louis’ daughter?
Still, it had been amusing to watch Ben and Kiki on their best behavior with Friedrich, Michael and Louis Junior in the background. At the same time, Friedrich had Suga on hand who he was trying to impress. Freddy had finally just played the role of the protective older brother when he had dumped a shovel full of snow on Kiki and Ben’s heads when he had caught them trying to steal a kiss out on one of the castle’s terraces. Later, Kiki had come to Louis and had asked what her options were. Could she have her brother removed from her property? And did Hohenzollern Castle have a dungeon? Kiki was ultimately disappointed when…
The band stopped playing and everyone started with the countdown. At the stroke of midnight, the netting up by the ceiling parted, hundreds of balloons, copious amounts of confetti dropped down, fireworks were going off outside. Louis set propriety aside and shared a kiss with Charlotte, he was aware of the flash bulbs going off. Let them see, he thought to himself unaware that he had provided a photograph that would run the front page of every newspaper in Germany the next morning.
1963 had arrived.
Pacoima, Los Angeles, California
Ritchie’s head had been swimming long before midnight rolled around and he was currently laying on the concrete patio behind his parent’s house trying not to be sick while his older brother, Bob was on the rusted lounge chair. They were currently playing a game of fireworks or gunshot as they were looking at the city lights reflecting off the smog. The television was on in the house and Ritchie could hear the program that his mother was watching with his younger brothers and sisters in the living room to kill time.
Ritchie had made the mistake of matching shots with Bob earlier in the night. The result was that their mother was not happy about having them getting drunk in her house and had said that their father would give them a sound thrashing when he got home from work. She had then made them take it out back.
A few hours later, they were out of tequila and midnight was finally rolling around.
“I think there is some beer left in the refrigerator” Bob said absently.
“And have Mom kill me?” Ritchie asked, “Fuck that.”
“Brave Army man” Bob replied.
“I know Sergeants who wouldn’t mess with Mom”
Bob laughed at that and there was a loud BOOM! from a few streets over.
“I think that was a cherry bomb” Ritchie said.
“Nope” Bob replied, “Thirty-Eight, someone shooting the moon.”
The tempo of the background noise increased, and Ritchie heard cheering. “Happy New Year!” Richie yelled. With any luck this one would go a Hell of lot better than the previous one had.
31st December 1962
Mitte, Berlin
The Grand Ballroom was lit up with brilliant multi-colored lights and the scene was like something from another century. Louis knew that of his ancestors with the exception of those who had been warriors in the Medieval period, would have been perfectly at home here. Louis was playing to role of host as they counted down the remaining minutes of 1962.
The reaction that Louis got when he returned to the Winter Residence was a reminder that he was counting down the days when he would no longer be Emperor. Everything that had happened in his absence over the prior week needed to be addressed that instant. When the day came that all of that was someone else’s problem was going to be welcome. Charlotte had asked him what he would do with himself. Louis had said that his grandfather had gone fishing in Gulf of Mexico with General von Wolvogle. Then they had gone to Samoa. When she had said that she had a hard time imagining him doing that Louis had said that he would think of something.
Spending the Christmas Holiday at the Castle had been a welcome retreat, but now everyone needed to go back to their lives. In Louis’ case, he needed to be present to host the royal New Year’s Ball in Berlin, Freddy and Suga were expected to be present as well. The announcement of their impending marriage saw to it that all eyes would be on them. Everyone knew that barring misadventure Freddy would be Friedrich the IV of Germany in only a decade and he was an apprentice of sorts presently. In addition to attending Law School, he was being seen in public with increasing frequency acting as his father’s proxy.
It should have been no surprise that Kristina was going back to the boat she had moored behind the War Museum. It would probably be to her dismay that security at the museum had been markedly increased in her absence. There was also no guarantee that she wouldn’t just cast off and go somewhere else up or down the river. Louis wasn’t worried too much though. She was supposed to report back to FSR in a few weeks and would need to come to a determination about her future. Even if it was to learn that they were giving her the boot, Kiki would still show up for it. She had always taken obligations seriously.
For Louis though, it had been nice to see that his oldest daughter had a life beyond the FSR or Medical Service. Extending the invitation to Benjamin Hirsch had been Charlotte’s idea. To get a measure of the boy, was how she put it, what wasn’t on paper. The son of a Chemistry Professor, Ben had met Kiki when she had lived across the alleyway at Katherine von Mischner’s house. These days when Ben wasn’t a student at the University of Berlin, he was a Reserve Officer in the Luftwaffe. That last part was something that Louis approved of. He had mentioned that he had been trying to volunteer for the Space Program. A glance at his record had revealed to Louis that Ben had come in just shy of induction into the Order of the Pour le Mérite, something that would advance his application.
The misgiving that Louis did have with Benjamin was that his middle-class background and how he was completely unfamiliar royal protocol that was bloody serious business. As much as Kiki tried to reject that, she took to it like breathing because it was a part of who she was. Charlotte thought that Louis was being a bit of a snob. Her perspective was that, yes, Ben was a commoner, but he probably wouldn’t be forever at the rate he was going. He would a Ritter at least if ever made it into orbit. The real question if he was a good fit for Louis’ daughter?
Still, it had been amusing to watch Ben and Kiki on their best behavior with Friedrich, Michael and Louis Junior in the background. At the same time, Friedrich had Suga on hand who he was trying to impress. Freddy had finally just played the role of the protective older brother when he had dumped a shovel full of snow on Kiki and Ben’s heads when he had caught them trying to steal a kiss out on one of the castle’s terraces. Later, Kiki had come to Louis and had asked what her options were. Could she have her brother removed from her property? And did Hohenzollern Castle have a dungeon? Kiki was ultimately disappointed when…
The band stopped playing and everyone started with the countdown. At the stroke of midnight, the netting up by the ceiling parted, hundreds of balloons, copious amounts of confetti dropped down, fireworks were going off outside. Louis set propriety aside and shared a kiss with Charlotte, he was aware of the flash bulbs going off. Let them see, he thought to himself unaware that he had provided a photograph that would run the front page of every newspaper in Germany the next morning.
1963 had arrived.
Pacoima, Los Angeles, California
Ritchie’s head had been swimming long before midnight rolled around and he was currently laying on the concrete patio behind his parent’s house trying not to be sick while his older brother, Bob was on the rusted lounge chair. They were currently playing a game of fireworks or gunshot as they were looking at the city lights reflecting off the smog. The television was on in the house and Ritchie could hear the program that his mother was watching with his younger brothers and sisters in the living room to kill time.
Ritchie had made the mistake of matching shots with Bob earlier in the night. The result was that their mother was not happy about having them getting drunk in her house and had said that their father would give them a sound thrashing when he got home from work. She had then made them take it out back.
A few hours later, they were out of tequila and midnight was finally rolling around.
“I think there is some beer left in the refrigerator” Bob said absently.
“And have Mom kill me?” Ritchie asked, “Fuck that.”
“Brave Army man” Bob replied.
“I know Sergeants who wouldn’t mess with Mom”
Bob laughed at that and there was a loud BOOM! from a few streets over.
“I think that was a cherry bomb” Ritchie said.
“Nope” Bob replied, “Thirty-Eight, someone shooting the moon.”
The tempo of the background noise increased, and Ritchie heard cheering. “Happy New Year!” Richie yelled. With any luck this one would go a Hell of lot better than the previous one had.
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Or he dies anyways due to some freak accident involving a furious, cheated-on wife, a bottle of Irish whiskey, and of course, a toilet plunger.
You don't know that. Could be an international holiday that goes horribly wrong.
Though funnily enough, his funeral ITTL will have one similarity to his one in OTL no matter when it happens. Irish Cadets as an Honor Guard.
Part 97, Chapter 1531
Chapter One Thousand Five Hundred Thirty-One
5th January 1963
Pankow-Heinersdorf
There were times when Jo felt it was sort of odd that Aunt Marcella became her Aunt from the moment that she had been welcomed into Kat’s family. The instant acceptance had caught her off guard years earlier, it still was something Jo had difficulty with at times. Helping Marcella clean out the attic of the house that Kat and Hans had grown up in was becoming one of those times.
“This belonged to Kat when she was your age and it would probably fit you, why don’t you try it on Josefine” Marcella said as she handed Jo the blue dress that she just removed from a cedar chest, “She never wore it though. It’s yours if it fits you.”
“Why didn’t she wear it?” Jo asked.
Marcella paused of a few seconds before saying, “Kat went through a difficult time, seven or eight years, where she tried to make herself as unattractive as possible. Button down shirts and trousers under an old coat were all she wanted to wear. Anything too feminine ended up in this chest.”
Jo held the dress up to her herself as she looked in the mirror full length mirror in the corner. She still had the same translucent skin and white blond hair that she always had, just these days she was finding herself with a figure that brought a great deal of unwanted male attention. She could certainly understand why Kat had concealed herself in such a manner. Suse had once told her that looking like a goddess from a Nordic epic must be such a hardship, her voice had been dripping with sarcasm. It was easy to see why Suse would say that, she had inherited her mother’s slight build and her father’s short stature. Many people had the mistaken notion that Suse was a cuddly little elf, then they actually got to know her and learned just how caustic and opinionated she could be.
“Why not give this to Tatiana in a few years?” Jo asked as she continued to look at the reflection.
“Because you’re here now” Marcella said, “There will still be plenty of other things around for Tatiana and Marie Alexandra when they get older. Now go try that on.”
As Jo changed her clothes, she thought about what had brought her here today.
The invitation to come over to Aunt Marcella’s house had come a few days earlier just after Jo had managed to get ahold of her mother on the phone. It had not been a pleasant conversation because Nathalie was trying to chase her off. She was still looking at three more years as a guest of the State in Denmark and something else was going on that she didn’t want to talk about. Kat muttered some dark comment about Jarl being up to his usual shit again. Jo understood that Kat was referring to her long absent father and that a lot of effort had gone into keeping their kinship from even becoming common knowledge. Kat figured that spending the day with Aunt Marcella was just the thing she needed after that.
“What do you think?” Jo asked as she finished putting on the dress.
“It looks lovely” Marcella said, “A touch dated, but that isn’t a problem. Retro as the young people call it, is fashionable? Yes?”
It was clear that Marcella had no idea what she was talking about, but Jo smiled and nodded. The dress wasn’t as unfashionable as she thought it was. Years earlier Marcella had probably bought it for her niece thinking that it was practical and would be flattering at the same time. Kat apparently wasn’t ready for that at the time.
“Thank you for this” Jo said, and Marcella smiled herself. It was Jo observation about her that even if her daughters and granddaughters were not hers, or were not even blood relations, she loved them all the same.
Wunsdorf-Zossen
Wearing the blue and white dress uniform of the 3rd MID as an Unteroffizer got him served a lot faster at this public house than Erik ever was by himself. It was something that Erik remarked upon after they had gotten their drinks. It seemed that Erik had learned a touch of discretion. After that the conversation had turned to their career aspirations.
“Postal Service?” Karl asked, marveling at the absurdity of that. Their Grandfather made an entire career of reading other people’s mail. Now Erik was talking about delivering it.
“What else am I going to do now that I’m out of the Marine Infantry?” Erik asked. The surgeons had managed to mostly restore his voice, but the enforced silence that he had been put through had been instructive to him. “If I had known that would work, I would have cut his throat ages ago” was what their grandmother had said on the subject. Erik had healed in time, that hadn’t been what had driven his change in careers though. Once the shooting had stopped Karl had discovered that his commitment to the Marine Infantry had lapsed. He could go or stay, his choice. Both Karl and Erik had enlisted at the same time to avoid getting the book thrown at them. So, they had gotten the news at about the same time. Karl had decided to stay, and Erik had told the Marine Infantry exactly what they could do with the reenlistment forms. Of course, their situations were completely different. Karl was eligible to make Feldwebel within a year, while Erik was still a Soldat. Perhaps delivering mail in rural Brandenburg was the perfect place for him.
5th January 1963
Pankow-Heinersdorf
There were times when Jo felt it was sort of odd that Aunt Marcella became her Aunt from the moment that she had been welcomed into Kat’s family. The instant acceptance had caught her off guard years earlier, it still was something Jo had difficulty with at times. Helping Marcella clean out the attic of the house that Kat and Hans had grown up in was becoming one of those times.
“This belonged to Kat when she was your age and it would probably fit you, why don’t you try it on Josefine” Marcella said as she handed Jo the blue dress that she just removed from a cedar chest, “She never wore it though. It’s yours if it fits you.”
“Why didn’t she wear it?” Jo asked.
Marcella paused of a few seconds before saying, “Kat went through a difficult time, seven or eight years, where she tried to make herself as unattractive as possible. Button down shirts and trousers under an old coat were all she wanted to wear. Anything too feminine ended up in this chest.”
Jo held the dress up to her herself as she looked in the mirror full length mirror in the corner. She still had the same translucent skin and white blond hair that she always had, just these days she was finding herself with a figure that brought a great deal of unwanted male attention. She could certainly understand why Kat had concealed herself in such a manner. Suse had once told her that looking like a goddess from a Nordic epic must be such a hardship, her voice had been dripping with sarcasm. It was easy to see why Suse would say that, she had inherited her mother’s slight build and her father’s short stature. Many people had the mistaken notion that Suse was a cuddly little elf, then they actually got to know her and learned just how caustic and opinionated she could be.
“Why not give this to Tatiana in a few years?” Jo asked as she continued to look at the reflection.
“Because you’re here now” Marcella said, “There will still be plenty of other things around for Tatiana and Marie Alexandra when they get older. Now go try that on.”
As Jo changed her clothes, she thought about what had brought her here today.
The invitation to come over to Aunt Marcella’s house had come a few days earlier just after Jo had managed to get ahold of her mother on the phone. It had not been a pleasant conversation because Nathalie was trying to chase her off. She was still looking at three more years as a guest of the State in Denmark and something else was going on that she didn’t want to talk about. Kat muttered some dark comment about Jarl being up to his usual shit again. Jo understood that Kat was referring to her long absent father and that a lot of effort had gone into keeping their kinship from even becoming common knowledge. Kat figured that spending the day with Aunt Marcella was just the thing she needed after that.
“What do you think?” Jo asked as she finished putting on the dress.
“It looks lovely” Marcella said, “A touch dated, but that isn’t a problem. Retro as the young people call it, is fashionable? Yes?”
It was clear that Marcella had no idea what she was talking about, but Jo smiled and nodded. The dress wasn’t as unfashionable as she thought it was. Years earlier Marcella had probably bought it for her niece thinking that it was practical and would be flattering at the same time. Kat apparently wasn’t ready for that at the time.
“Thank you for this” Jo said, and Marcella smiled herself. It was Jo observation about her that even if her daughters and granddaughters were not hers, or were not even blood relations, she loved them all the same.
Wunsdorf-Zossen
Wearing the blue and white dress uniform of the 3rd MID as an Unteroffizer got him served a lot faster at this public house than Erik ever was by himself. It was something that Erik remarked upon after they had gotten their drinks. It seemed that Erik had learned a touch of discretion. After that the conversation had turned to their career aspirations.
“Postal Service?” Karl asked, marveling at the absurdity of that. Their Grandfather made an entire career of reading other people’s mail. Now Erik was talking about delivering it.
“What else am I going to do now that I’m out of the Marine Infantry?” Erik asked. The surgeons had managed to mostly restore his voice, but the enforced silence that he had been put through had been instructive to him. “If I had known that would work, I would have cut his throat ages ago” was what their grandmother had said on the subject. Erik had healed in time, that hadn’t been what had driven his change in careers though. Once the shooting had stopped Karl had discovered that his commitment to the Marine Infantry had lapsed. He could go or stay, his choice. Both Karl and Erik had enlisted at the same time to avoid getting the book thrown at them. So, they had gotten the news at about the same time. Karl had decided to stay, and Erik had told the Marine Infantry exactly what they could do with the reenlistment forms. Of course, their situations were completely different. Karl was eligible to make Feldwebel within a year, while Erik was still a Soldat. Perhaps delivering mail in rural Brandenburg was the perfect place for him.
Plot Twist.
Erik meets Lothar, and they become good friends.....
Erik meets Lothar, finds out who Lothar is and goes under cover for the BII before being recruited into the "Family Business".
Erik, soon to be Kat's protegee, giving Tilo anxiety unto the next generation.....
Be really nice revenge for Kat.
Maybe even a chance to break the curse on the male side of the Schultz family. Enough of them seem to have avoided prison now.