Chapter 141: Chapter 6

Cleo

 

The carriage stopped in front of a small estate, which was painted in various shades of pink. Pretty flowering weeds and ivy overgrew the front yard. Ivy also climbed up part of the house wall. Algae grew on the old roof, which required repair.

"Your grandma lives here?", asked Cleo, looking at the house in horror. “When was it renovated the last time?”

"A few weeks ago? Grandma wrote that she had recently mended the roof."

"Her?"

"Yes." Charlotte sighed. "My grandmother, Antonia, thinks she can do it on her own. The good old lady is three hundred years old and stubborn! My grandfather... Well, he's too scattered to worry about repairs. Clemens. He is her fourth husband. Mortal, like all before him. He should be ninety by now. Ten years ago, the two had their first child together. I told you about that... Ernestine is a lovely child, but just as scattered as her parents."

"I remember." Cleo was relieved that Charlotte had repeated her grandparents' names. Cleo had forgotten them, which Charlotte probably suspected.

The two got out of the carriage and made their way through the front yard. Fortunately, the weeds hadn't yet taken over the sidewalks. At the door, the two were greeted by a tall girl who pushed past the servants. They smiled amused and bowed to Cleo and Charlotte.

"Charlotte!" The girl embraced Cleo's wife stormily. "Mom told me you're coming today!"

Ernestine had a round face and brown, large deer eyes, just like her tangled hair, which was probably once braided. Her eyes wandered to Cleo. The girl looked at her with big, pretty eyes. "Who are you? Mom said Charlotte is bringing a woman."

Before Cleo could answer, a witch with long, blond hair appeared at the entrance. A small, round pair of glasses sat slightly crooked on her round nose. "No. I said 'her wife', Ernestine!" Charlotte's grandmother bowed deeply. "Welcome Your Highness!" Then she hugged Charlotte. "Welcome my little one! Come both in. I have tea and cake." Antonia's gaze wandered over Charlotte's dress and she nodded appreciatively. Cleo had to stop herself from laughing. Charlotte had not exaggerated. Antonia cared about what her granddaughter was wearing.

Ernestine grabbed Charlotte's hand and pulled her away. "Come! Mom baked herself! And I helped!"

Charlotte looked apologetically at Cleo, then she had already disappeared from her sight. Cleo was alone with the older witch.

"I am very pleased with your invitation", she said and entered the villa. Inside everything was colorful. Nothing fit together.

"Oh! No!" Antonia grabbed her hands and squeezed them lovingly. "I'm happy! I was delighted when I heard about the wedding! Charlotte used to talk almost exclusively about you."

"Did she?"

"Certainly." Now Antonia looked at her more closely. Just like Charlotte before. "You look adorable! I'm used to a lot from Charlotte... Once she wore a terrible dress at a family celebration. Believe me! Bilious green. A horrible color. Come along. We should get to the cake before Charlotte and Ernestine start without us. There is raspberry cake. Unfortunately without raspberries... The fruits were moldy. What a pity. We, therefore, colored the dough with beetroot juice... Oh. I have one request. Please just let my husband Clemens sit in his armchair. He lost his ability to hear nine years ago and hasn't been able to see anything for a year now. He is blind and would only be frightened. I don't know how long I'll have him with me."

"I'm sorry."

Antonia smiled. "I appreciate that. Thank you very much. I have lost so many beloved men. Three husbands and also five of my children. Except for Charlotte's mother, they were all mortal. But then, ten years ago, Clemens and I decided to have a child together. He didn't want me to be alone when he... And maybe I'll be lucky this time and Ernestine is a witch? And she stays with me for a long time. Forever, if we're both lucky."

Cleo answered with a nod. She didn't know what to say. In the meantime, they had arrived in the living room, where Charlotte and Ernestine were already sitting at the table. In an armchair in front of the fireplace sat an elderly man and slept. Clemens.

"Your name is Cleo? Sit with us!", shouted Ernestine, who already had a large piece of cake on her plate. Just like Charlotte.

Cleo grinned and sat down next to her wife. Meanwhile, Antonia looked at her daughter reproachfully.

"Sweety? We wait until everyone is at the table." She pointed to the piece of cake.

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"But Mom! Such a great cake needs to be eaten quickly!" In fact, Ernestine had already eaten half of her slice of cake.

Antonia sighed and opened a piece of cake for Cleo before taking something herself. A loud snoring could be heard from Clemens. "He used to wake up from his own snoring!" she said, laughing. "And then he accused me of it!"

"Should I wake Dad? Does he want cake too?" asked Ernestine. Clemens snoring now sounded as if he were sawing a hole in the wall.

"No, Sweety. Let him sleep. We can leave him a piece." Then she looked at Cleo and Charlotte. "So? I want to know everything! How was the wedding? And why didn't you two invite me? I would have loved to see it!"

"Because it was secret, grandmother." Charlotte poured herself some coffee. "Only a few of our closest friends were present. And my best friend, Karlo, married us. We couldn't ask either Papa or King Friedrich for that. Luckily, friends are allowed to do the same! Even if it's meant for friends to step in when there are no family members... But that's basically the case. Isn't it?"

"I'm sure the Queen will want to change the law now." Cleo held out her cup to Charlotte to pour her coffee as well.

"But I would still have liked to have been there! Karlo? The boy you were with at the academy? He's a doctor now, right?"

"Yes, exactly," Charlotte confirmed. "As soon as our marriage was concluded, one of our friends told the press about it. We don't know who yet. But it would have come out anyway. The moment our marriage was registered in the town hall... We got married in the small village near my parents' villa. In a restaurant. Cleo looked wonderful in her suit."

"And you were adorable!" Cleo winked at her. "I would marry you again in a heartbeat!"

The cake tasted strange. Presumably, it was due to the beetroot. But Cleo tried not to let anything show.

"How beautiful!" Antonia smiled. "And Karlo accompanied you to the town hall?"

"Well, he had to do that to witness our marriage!" Charlotte grinned. "And after that, the three of us were celebrating. That was funny."

"You were celebrating?" Ernestine looked at them with shining eyes. "Was there cake? And music? And fruit juice?"

"At our wedding, yes. We were partying in a pub. Unfortunately, there was no cake", Cleo replied.

"And you took Charlotte's and my family's name? Princess? Your name is now von Schlossstadt?" Antonia gave her daughter another piece of cake, as she had eaten hers in the meantime.

"Von Sonnenhof Schlossstadt. Legally, I am not allowed to replace my name." Cleo shrugged. Mother was most upset about this. That I am now also called Schlossstadt. Serves her right.

"How beautiful! I kept the newspaper article about your wedding... I'll get him quickly... I framed it! Where do I get my glasses?" Antonia searched her dress for the glasses she had on her nose. "Charlotte? What color was your dress? I hope it wasn’t an ugly green!"

Charlotte groaned. "Grandma! We got married in white. As for your glasses..."

But Charlotte could not continue to speak because Antonia interrupted her. "No green? Wonderful! The time when you didn't want to wear anything but green was terrible. I can't stand green... Except for plants. Where are these glasses!" Antonia now looked under the chair. Cleo had to hide her laugh.

"Mom!" Ernestine groaned. "You're wearing your glasses!"

"Oh?" Antonia touched her nose. "Indeed! There they are! Thank you, Sweety!" Then she hurried away to get the newspaper article. Cleo grinned. Of course, she had seen the article already when her mother held the newspaper reproachfully in her face, but if it was so important to the old witch, she would like to look at the article again.

"She does that all the time", Ernestine whispered to Cleo and Charlotte. "Yesterday she searched the whole house for her pocket watch, wearing it in her garden apron. She wanted to pluck weeds. Although she would only have to order gardeners... The servants talked about it in the kitchen! I heard it when I secretly got cookies." Meanwhile, Antonia's husband's snoring grew louder.

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