Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred Forty-Four
19th April 1968
Mitte, Berlin
“Vicky is entirely too self-absorbed to realize what you’ve done for her” Japik said as they waited in the greenroom of DRI, German Radio International. “And having your hair cut that short is a terrible look for you.”
Rea just shrugged. She didn’t have control over what other people thought of her. That didn’t mean that she couldn’t take advantage of that fact, it was something that she did often with Japik as her only confidant as she planned her next moves. Most recently, the scandal rags had been apoplectic about her appearance during her sister’s wedding. They managed to prove that they didn’t understand who she was and just how shallow their understanding of human sexuality was. It never occurred to any of them that she had done it on purpose. So that all the speculation was about her as opposed to Vicky, who seemingly had no idea how little digging would be required to learn what she was hiding. All the smear merchants would ultimately find out about Rea was that she was straight. Then they would have egg on their face, which would serve them right. In the meantime, Rea found herself with a huge platform as the rebel Princess of Germany and she intended to advance her own interests. The invitation to go on a live interview with Moses Newton was too much to pass up. The internationally renowned Disk Jockey had recently arrived from Argentina, after agreeing to broadcast from Berlin over the summer.
“It will grow back” Rea replied, “Besides, summer is coming and having long hair is a bother when it gets hot. It is like wearing a fur hood.”
“Still you are giving people the wrong idea about who you are” Japik said, how he actually felt about the entire matter slipping through his normal composure.
“Yes” Rea said, “Giving me a just a taste of what you or Vicky must feel all the time, but I always have option of going back don’t I. So, it isn’t really real, is it?”
Japik just stared at her agape, like if she had just said something completely unexpected. In the background, the speakers in the greenroom were playing “Season of Madness” by the Moondogs, John Lennon was shouting over guitars riffs that sounded like shattering glass about being the last sane man in an insane world. It fit the moment perfectly and not just in the greenroom. Months after its quiet release, the Moondogs album had been discovered by listeners. It had given voice to what people around the world were feeling and had seemingly come out of nowhere to explode like an atomic bomb in the consciousnesses of people on both sides of the Atlantic.
Siplingerkopf, Bavaria
It was a perfect day to be high up in the mountains as the panoramic view was incredible as they reached the summit. There were still patches of snow on the ground revealing just how early in the season it still was. Rauchbier tugged at his leash as he had dozens of things along the trail that he needed to sniff out. Kiki kept him close because the ridge dropped away sharply on either side and Rauchbier had a terrible habit of following his nose into trouble. Ben was walking a few meters behind Kiki, unlike her he was a bit winded after the hike to get up here.
A consortium of Universities had leased Girenkopf, one of the other peaks on this ridge to build an observatory, which was more accessible than Siplingerkopf. A few days earlier there had been an elaborate groundbreaking ceremony to mark the beginning of construction, here anyway. The construction of the mirror that was to be used in the telescope had started years earlier, long before the site of the observatory had even been a consideration. Ben had asked Kiki to accompany him on this trip as he felt he needed a bit of moral support as he had needed to explain to the locals that several meters were going to need to be blasted off the top of the mountain.
Kiki had been staying with Ben in Balderschwang, which was spread out like a map in the valley below, as a guest of the Mayor. The Mayor’s wife had assumed that Kiki was Ben’s intended so she hadn’t objected to them staying under the same roof. It seemed that not correcting her was the easiest way to keep the peace. To the people of Balderschwang the City of Berlin was an abstraction and learning that Kiki was the daughter of the Emperor himself put an entirely different complexion on things. Ben was the Burggraf, a young man who had gone off to adventure, become relatively wealthy, and had even won the heart of a Princess at the end of it. That sounded like something from a fairytale. Kiki had pointed out that she had known Ben from before he had started adventuring, she had also been in Korea. The villagers had just given her a knowing smile.
“How can you not be tired?” Ben asked as he reached the summit.
“They don’t give this to just anyone” Kiki said pointing to the FSR patch on her coat.
“Then you will know exactly what to do when I fall over from exhaustion” Ben said as he sat down on the grass next to the large wooden crucifix that someone had constructed up here. Rauchbier immediately ran up and started licking his face.
“I think he is on top of it” Kiki said as she sat down on the grass next to Ben and took in the view.