[Netherlands] Message to Norway

[Dutchy]

"I can understand that it may be a controversial issue, however the murder of a Metropolitan Police Officer in London in 1984 paints a grim picture of how dangerous rogue elements within embassies can be. The Netherlands respects the diplomatic immunity of nations to the fullest, however diplomatic missions should not be used as a haven to harm Dutch society without facing repercussions. Therefore the National Police will be given the mission of providing external security to embassies and consulates."

 

[Odinson]

"I see," Vinter said. "Well that's ultimately your government's choice to make. I'm sure it wont cause an issue for us, provided that you utilize your police as you said... I have a request from the Prime Minister. Now, please feel no need to accommodate us in this regard, we're merely asking this as a favor. The Royal Air Force is a bit lacking at the moment, for reasons that I can't exactly go into detail about. Do you think that your armed forces would be willing to man two or three of your own fighter-jets at one of our air force facilities for the next few months? We're presently at a bit of a disadvantage right now, and could use the help. If not, it wont be an issue."

::::::::::

Sophia had asked to be guided to the restroom. A polite staff-member of the palace escorted her to the facilities, however when she walked out she couldn't find him. The Dutch somehow managed to make a palace almost as confusing as the palace in Norway. Eventually, she just started walking in one direction. What are they going to do, arrest me? she thought to herself. The young noblewoman curiously looked up in awe at the artwork on the walls and the occasional views outside when there were windows. At some point, she turned a corner and collided into a man walking the opposite direction who was exactly her height and who appeared to be doing some last minute reading.

"Unnskyld meg, beklager beklager!" she instinctively apologized to him in Norwegian before remembering that she was in The Netherlands. Despite being as tall as him and well-dressed, the man could probably tell that she was young, though it'd be hard to guess that she was 19. Her hair was blindingly blonde, like that of her Viking ancestors (or her mythological ones, as others would attest). On a somewhat lesser-note, her hair was gently styled, but it otherwise wasn't restricted by any pens or hair clips. It was instead free-flowing and long which would appear slightly unusual since she seemed to be part of a foreign diplomatic team, but one could probably pass it off due to her youthfulness or her national origin. In reality, it was because she knew Enoch loved her hair being down, and it took less effort on her part.

Sophia was wearing a blue dress which was not exceptionally thick or warm, even though it was around nine degrees Celsius outside. When comparing her to the rest of the Norwegians there, though, any Dutchman would instead note that while they were all dressed nice and properly for the occasion, none of them were wearing heavy coats or thick clothing. The lower half of her dress bounced around with each step she took, while the upper-half was well-fitted to her young form and just barely skirted the line between "formal" and "formal-yet-distracting". On her dress, where a broach could be placed, was a modest 24-carrot gold pen that was slightly smaller than a 1-Euro coin. It wasn't painted, but instead was intricately engraved with the crest of the Anker family.

She looked very flustered and embarrassed as she reverted to her surprisingly good English.
"Are you okay, sir? I'm sorry I... Do you work here? I'm actually a bit lost. Someone took me to the restroom, but I was paying too much attention to the artwork and this beautiful building to remember how to find my way back," she said bashfully.

@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

"We're still drafting the bill, so it may still be subject to change. I simply believed it to be courteous to inform you of possible changes which may affect yourself."

"I won't be able to say anything definitive in regards to any deployments, however I'll urgently notify the Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of your request and have one of them get back to you as soon as possible."

::::::::::

Willem-Alexander dressed in a black suit for his civilian duties was walking towards the conference room in preparation for his meeting with the Norwegian Crown Prince as had been arranged through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was walking through the palace which was well known to him, having spent many hours here assisting his mother in his duties. In his hand he had a file provided to him by the Queen's Adjudant containing information on the Norwegian monarchy. As he turned the corner he bumped into young lady.

She replied in a language which he didn't fully recognise, but sounded Germanic. "No madam, I should be the one to apologise, I wasn't looking where I was going," raising his book to support his reasoning. He chuckled slightly at her second question, "I frequent this palace from time to time. May I have the honour of escorting you?"

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

"Thank you, we really appreciate it. If you need to find a way to sell it, you could even say that it's the trial-run for join exercises.. I think we've gotten off on the right foot here," the Minister said with a friendly smile.

"The trade minister himself would have to handle this, but he wanted to inquire about establishing one or two trade routes between Norway and The Netherlands."

::::::::::

Sophia looked relieved that she found someone who knew where they were going. "Oh that would be wonderful.. Um.. I have been practicing Dutch, hang on." She thought for a moment, and made a subpar, albeit cute, attempt to say "Ja graag" which she understood to mean something along the lines of, "Yes please."

"I'm trying to find my way back to the room where they're holding the Norwegian diplomatic corps... My name is Sophia Anker, by the way. I'm not actually a part of the corps, but I was able to come here with them."

She briefly looked around to make sure no one was listening, and said in a more hushed voice, "Eno... The Crown Prince is my friend, he invited me to come here to The Netherlands with him for this visit. This is the first time I've left Scandinavia! It's nice to run into men who aren't a foot shorter than me," she said as she tried to combat her urge to giggle.

She let him lead the way, and couldn't help but notice the words on the file, indicating that it was about the Norwegian monarchy.

"Oh but... keep that between us if you don't mind. I'm not sure if I'm suppose to keep that a secret or not, I'm just really excited to be here. This is the second palace I've been to in the past two days! What's your name? Are there any questions I can answer for you about the monarchy? I know a little bit." Sophia was remarkably genuine. She had, for a Norwegian girl at least, an excitable and bubbly personality that was normally entirely honest and positive. Every word she said was believable. Also, at other times, she could be exceptionally courageous and bold.

As they continued their journey through the Dutch labyrinth, a member of the palace staff moved aside to one of the walls of the hallway and let them pass by. "Everyone is so nice here," she noted.

@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

"I doubt I'll need to find a reason to sell it, we are always ready to assist our friends in their times of need."

"International trade is something which falls within my ministry and while the Netherlands has not indulged in any trade deals yet, we are eager to begin expanding our trade network. Feel free to have your minister contact me for discussions."

::::::::::

The Crown Prince grinned at the attempt to speak Dutch, he used gestured in the direction of his orgininal heading, "Please follow me." As they walked together they he listened carefully to what she was saying, "It must be a privilege to be so closely acquainted with the Crown Prince."

"I'll keep my lips sealed," he said with an accompanying wink. "Please call me," he hesitated for a slight second, "Alexander." He closed the file as he realised he had left it open for her to look at, "Ah, is there anything you could tell me about the personality of the Crown Prince?"

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

"I may be able to encourage Sweden and Denmark to consider trade with The Netherlands as well. Time will tell in that regard.. This is excellent. We'll work on these things that we've discussed, and perhaps in a few more weeks we could have you in Oslo to further our relationship. I think this is all a good base to work from," Vinter said as he rested his hands on his knees.

Enoch sat up, took another sip of water, and said, "I am looking forward to meeting the Crown Prince. Is he a nice fellow?"

::::::::::

"Very well, nice to meet you Alexander," she said blissfully. Sophia pondered for a few moments how to summarize her boyfriend in just a handful of words. She kept up with Willem as they continued to walk down the hallway.

"He may come off as arrogant sometimes, but I think it's because he's trying to hide the fact that he's smart. Also, he's extremely kind and caring when the situation demands it. He's like the rest of us Norwegians, in that he does a rather good job at keeping his emotions under control. That might be why he has a short temper sometimes... But otherwise, I'd say he's a rather stoic individual..." she stopped talking and then her head popped up. Willem could practically see the light-bulb above her head.

"I almost forgot to tell you! He's in the Royal Navy. He's an operator in the special forces - the Nordic Rangers. He just returned home from a mission somewhere abroad. He can't really talk much about it, but I know he really likes the military. I think he prefers being a soldier then being a Prince... but I think he's also a good Prince," she pondered on that list sentence for a bit and looked up at Willem to see if she had satisfied his question.

Sophia suddenly felt deja vu as she recognized the hallway they were in. "Oh, I think we're close! Are you sure you know where you're going, Alexander?" she said teasingly. Another staffer moved aside as they walked by, and looked at the two strangely when Sophia called him "Alexander".

@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

"We really appreciate your good word when it comes to encouraging trade between the Netherlands and other Scandinavian nations. I agree that this is a good foundation for future cooperation between our two countries."

"I haven't had the chance to meet the Crown Prince in my capacity as Foreign Minister yet, however, he is a man devoted to his country. I suppose you could describe him as down to earth, pragmatic and direct, like many of us Dutchmen," the Minister said with a chuckle.

::::::::::

"Serving in the capacity as a special forces operator must be a most difficult but rewarding job." He nodded at her follow up, as he thought of his own service as a reservist. "Well, thank you for the insight. I'm sorry for asking all these question, I've been tasked with preparing a report about Prince Enoch."

"To be honest, I'm not really sure where the Norwegian diplomatic delegation is being kept. I was hoping you would remember where you were staying," he said with a smile.

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

If there was nothing else to discuss, then Enoch and the Foreign Minister shook hands with their Dutch colleagues. The Minister was ready to go home and relay all of this information to the Prime Minister at the next Council of State meeting so that they could start working on creating a solid relationship with The Netherlands. As the diplomats left the room, Enoch remained standing and stayed with the Queen's Adjudant. Presumably soon, they'd be meeting Prince Willem.

::::::::::

"It's okay. It was very nice to meet you, Mister Alexander. I think I can find my way back now - I really got lost in this maze for a second!" she said, smiling. Sophia recognized the color of the hallway they were in now, and knew the diplomatic corps were being kept in a room just down the hall. She giggled to herself as walked back into the room. That man had no idea that he had just been walking with Lady Sophia Anker, one of the few remaining members of the nobility in Norway. How silly he would feel if he ever finds out... What a nice man, she thought to herself.

Sophia rejoined the diplomatic corps. Once the Minister was ready to leave, she waited with some of the Royal Police Escort who would stay in The Netherlands as long as Enoch was there.

@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, after shaking the hands of his counterpart, would leave the royal palace and return to the Ministry where he would reflect on the meeting and write a report for the Prime Minister.

::::::::::

"The pleasure has been all mine, Lady Anker. I hope you have an enjoyable stay in the Netherlands." He chuckled to himself as he walked towards the conference room. Sophia had no idea that she had just been walking with Crown Prince Willem-Alexander. How silly she would feel if she ever finds out... What a nice young lady, he thought to himself.

He spotted the Foreign Minister leaving the conference room and briefly shook his hand as they passed each other. "How was the meeting, Minister?" He asked with genuine curiosity. "Yes Sir, we've had a productive session. I believe that both countries have grown closer thanks to this meeting."

Willem-Alexander entered the room the Minister had just departed. As he entered the room he scanned his surroundings, noticing only the Norwegian Prince and Captain Rooijakker to be present in the room. With confident strides he approached the young man and extended his hand to greet him. "Prince Enoch, it is a true pleasure to be meeting you." He nodded to the Queen's Adjudant who had saluted to him as he entered the room, "I'll take it form here Captain." Rooijakker responded with a quick nod and swiftly exited the room.

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

Enoch stood up normally, but had to internalize the pain in his side. He kept his left arm firmly against his side and offered the other to his Dutch Royal counterpart. The seven-foot tall young man had a firm handshake, though the Dutch Crown Prince was probably able to see that Enoch was just starting to break a sweat on his forehead. "It's very nice to meet you, Prince Willem-Alexander. Would you prefer Prince Willem?" he asked. Enoch turned to his left and saw the only other person in the room besides the two princes, a young woman from the Foreign Ministry. Enoch very calmly, but seriously, told her in Norwegian, "Leave right now, please."

She blushed and stood up, "Of course, Your Royal Highness. I'll wait in the diplomatic room." She quietly exited the back of the room and pondered what she had done wrong.

Once she was gone, Enoch continued to hold his side and sighed as he spoke in English, "Thank God, finally. I didn't think I'd make it through that meeting." He winced and walked over to the windows. He peered outside momentarily, before he started unfurling them so that one could not see into the room from the outside. He did this for all the windows in the large room, and then locked both of the entrances to the room. Then walked back over to Willem.

"I... I don't know where to begin.." he said as he shook his head. Assuming that Willem hadn't said anything yet, he probably wanted an explanation. Enoch visibly cringed as he took off his suit-jacket, and flopped it over his chair. He loosened his tie as well, and unbuttoned his collar. Willem could see that the left side of Enoch's abdomen was stained red with still-wet blood.

"I know this looks bad," Enoch said. "Just... just listen for a second," he said as he carefully sat back down in the chair behind him.
"It's not as bad as it looks. I was on an operation in... it doesn't matter where I was, what matters is that I was shot - by a 9-millimeter I think. We got the bullet taken out before I came home, the wound was cleaned or whatever they do, and I got stitches. When I got home, though, I'm pretty sure I busted one or two of the stitches... it hurts like hell, and it bleeds... No one except my team knows that I was shot, I can't let anyone find out," he said to Willem as calmly as he could.

"I have no idea what the press would say about this, but I'm sure my father would be outraged, and God knows what the Storting would do... I'm not sure how much you know about being shot," he said as he he rested his left arm by his side, "but nothing important was hit. 'Just a flesh wound' as some might say. I just really need these stitches to be fixed. I figured if there's any chance of me getting this fixed without anyone knowing, it could be in another country. I read that we were around the same age, and I elected to come. I thought that maybe you could... relate, somehow?" Enoch winced again.

"Dritt" he groaned when a spat of pain came over him. It took a few seconds for it to go away. "Is there a doctor, or nurse here that you trust? It's just the stitches, maybe a new bandage? I'm sorry to put you in this position, I really am. Maybe you could just say that we had some questions about humanitarianism or a medical question about some... royal duty, I don't know. Can you just make something up? It's important for my country that this doesn't come out," Enoch finally stopped talking and just leaned his head back and hoped that the Dutch Prince would be his friend.

 

[Odinson]

@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

Willem chuckled as he once again had to go through the process of naming, something which was usually even more of an effort in his case. "Please, William will do just fine." William moved to take a seat at the table, however stopped as he realised the Norwegian wasn't doing the same. His eyes traced the Crown Prince as he moved through the room, closing the curtains and locking the doors. William's hands clenched the chair he was holding, his muscles tense, as he prepared to face whatever was going on.

The sudden sight of blood came as a shock and Willem jerked up from the chair. He remained frozen behind his chair as he listened to the Norwegian's explanation of his injuries. He cleared his throat before speaking, "I must say, this is definitely not what I was expecting to happen at this meeting ."

Willem walked around the table to be standing near Enoch, "I could have Captain Rooijakker get the Royal Physician. He can treat you with without requiring you to go to hospital or anywhere the press would be able to see you in this state. I can assure you he won't leak any information."

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

"If you trust him, then I think that would be best," Enoch said. He almost pulled out a cigarette but figured smoking wasn't allowed because, of course, this was The Netherlands. He rubbed his face and sighed as he waited for Willem to make a call for the physician. Once he came back into the room, he sat up and shook his head, "My girlfriend would murder me if she found out about this... I'm surprised I've been able to hide it this long, actually," he said as they waited for the medical help.

@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

Willem nodded at the response before walking towards the door and opening it just enough to see Captain Rooijakker who was standing guard outside. In Dutch he asked, "Lodewijk, could you please bring Dr. Arendsen to the conference room and please do it discreetly." The Captain raised his eyebrow inquisitively before nodding and heading off to collect the Royal Physician. Willem turned back to Enoch, closing the door behind him, "Your girlfriend wouldn't be the lovely Miss Anker, would she?"

Four minutes later a short bald man, accompanied by Captain Roojakker, entered the conference room from a second door, out of sight from any roaming Norwegian diplomatic staff. Willem welcomed him before leading him to Crown Prince Enoch. "Doctor, this is Prince Enoch from Norway and he is suffering from a few ripped stitches, would you be so kind to patch him up?"

Constant Arendsen moved closer to examine the Crown Prince's wound. "Your Highness, I'll be removing all your stitches and then restitching the wound in order to avoid infection."

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

"Lady Sophia Anker," Enoch said with a smile, "she's really proud of that, but pretends that she's not... Yes she is. She thinks she's here so I can take her on a Dutch vacation but really it's so I can get Dutch free healthcare, courtesy of the Orange Crown... How exactly do you know that? If you were Norwegian I'd need to have you shot for knowing such classified information," he said humorously before wincing from his stitches. He decided to get down and lay on the rug below him.

"I'm hoping this rug wasn't hand-made by one of your ancestors," Enoch said, noting as a bit of blood was now running down his side, further ruining his white shirt. He laid his head back and sighed just as the doctor came in.

"Hallo doctor... I'm getting quite dizzy at the moment so if we could rush this along.." Enoch said as he carefully unbuttoned his white shirt and then took off his undershirt as well.
"Do whatever you need to do," he noted.

Enoch looked up at Willem as the doctor began his work. "I wasn't sure if you're the kind of guy that has a sense of humor, but now I think you have one..."
Enoch pointed over to a small paper bag where the Norwegian female diplomat had been sitting, "I brought a gift for you. Sorry I didn't wrap it up.. because, you know, I'm a man," Enoch said.

Inside of the paper bag was a small bucket with ice and a single bottle of Pilsner lager.
@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

"Ah, my apologies," the Prince quickly said, acknowledging his mistake. Willem chucked at the mention of being shot, "Well, I seem to have my sources."

The doctor placed his hand on the Norwegian's shoulder, "Your Highness, my back isn't as good as it used to be, would you be willing to lay on the table instead?" Once the Crown Prince was properly positioned the Royal Physician began his work. While the doctor proceeded Willem moved in closer to get a better view.

Willem's eyes diverted towards the paper bag which Enoch was pointing towards, "A present? How kind," Willem said as he moved towards it and picked it up. He looked inside and found a bucket of water (as the ice had most likely melted since there is no mention of preparing the present in the Netherlands it must have been Prime Norwegian Ice) with a Norwegian Pilsner. Willem lauged as he picked up the beer, "Well, it is a most gracious gift Your Highness. I have always wanted to try some Norwegian beer."

The Royal Physician proceeded to work expertly, with his years of experience speeding up the operation. After having cleaned the wound to prevent infection and placed some new stitches, the doctor rose. "Your Highness, I advise you to avoid doing anything physically exerting. Do you wish to have anything against the pain?"[/i]

Captain Rooijakker who had remained in the room, though stayed out of the way, moved forward "Your Highness, I imagine you could do with some fresh clothes." He handed over a pile of clothing containing a undershirt and white shirt.

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

Enoch laid down as the doctor requested. It was obvious that either he, or someone else with less experience, had tried fixing the stitches a few times which was probably why they were broken now. Presumably they could have broken before this point. It was probably a good thing that Enoch came for free Dutch healthcare. After the doctor finished stitching him up, Enoch sighed and was finally relieved. He had been worried for a good while now that he was just going to slowly bleed to death.

In response to the the doctor's question, Enoch shook his head. "Thank you for the offer, but I prefer to stay away from pain medication... I think they do more harm than good for me," he simply noted.

Enoch slowly got up off the floor, being careful not to bend or strain too much, and got back to his feet. He nodded to Captain Rooijakker and took the fresh clothes. "Thank you Captain, I appreciate it," he said as he slipped the shirt back on, and then the dress shirt as well. He buttoned it down and then rubbed his face. "Thank you both for your service, I appreciate it - and you as well, Prince Willem." He also carefully put his tie back on, carefully, along with his suit jacket. If there was nothing else that the other two gentlemen had to say, Enoch waited for them to leave he and the Dutch prince alone.

"I didn't think I would make it this far, but here we are," he said as they were finally in solitude. He went back to his chair and sat down again. For the first time in hours, he finally felt a sense of relief.

"I honestly don't have much to talk to you about in regard to diplomacy, Willem... It's honestly not my specialty. There are people in the government, though, that in their infinite wisdom think that my father and I will be useful.." he avoided the word "pawns" and instead said, "diplomatic tools. Especially those in the Royalist Party. So maybe it would be helpful if we spent a bit more time here.. hm.."

It only took a couple of seconds for Enoch to remember the other thing he wanted to discuss with Willem.
"There is this thing.." he said as he looked up for a few moments. "Some might think it's a bit silly, but I like the idea of it. It was actually my father's idea, in some way, and he and I have been working on it together. I'm not exactly sure what we're going to name it yet, but it'll probably be something along the lines of 'The Purple Order' or 'The Purple Society'. He and I have been designing this.. organization that would be the most prestigious in the world. It would exist exclusively for the royalty of the world. Really, it would mostly exist to organize international gatherings of people like us in private. It could maybe serve some kind of diplomatic purpose for some countries, but I think it'd mostly just be a prestigious, and fun, social thing for the royalty of the world. Out of curiosity, do you think you, or your mother - the Queen - would have any kind of interest in being a part of it? You're the only person I've spoken about this to, besides my father."

@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

With the Crown Prince now stitched up and no longer bleeding, both the Royal Physician and Captain Rooijakker would take their leave and exit the room using the same back door from which they entered in order to avoid being spotted by any members from the Norwegian diplomatic delegation. Rooijakker would circle back around through the hallways which he knew like the palm of his hand in order to retake his position standing guard at the main entrance to the conference room.

Inside the room Willem would take a seat at the table and motioned Enoch to do the same so that they could finally have a decent conversation.

Willem listened, with a keen ear to, the the proposal, "Well, that sounds like quite an ambitious project. Has anything similar ever existed in the past?"

"I will be more than willing to put forward this proposal to my mother. However depending on the actual specifics of the organisation, it may be something that we will have to discuss with the government especially if you seek it to play certain diplomatic roles. Though, if it were to remain a ceremonial organisation then I don't believe there would be anything limiting us from participation."

"I can say that I myself would be most keen to improve inter-royal connections with other esteemed families."

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

"Royals have of course met up in large groups in the past, but as far as I know, something like this has never existed - at least not as a specific society or organization... From what my father and I have discussed, it would be more of a stately, ceremonial organization. Any diplomacy that would take place between members would be on their own accord, and not an official function of the event. But I'm happy to hear that you are interested. I think that it would be very beneficial to those of us who are... 'of the purple' as I think the Romans would say." Enoch folded his hands and nodded.

"Well I'm happy that we have been able to meet. I'm just sorry it had to be in an official capacity like this - I'd much rather be in a cabin in the woods drinking spiked cocoa right now... Maybe we can arrange that in the future," he said sincerely. Enoch carefully stood up and raised one of his fingers in the air, "Oh! Sophia actually wanted to meet you... would that be okay? She told me that she's been practicing Dutch, and I guess she thinks you're an authority on the language. Would that be alright?" he asked.
@Dutchy

 

[Dutchy]

"I too am glad we have been granted the opportunity to get to know each other, though I hope in the future there will be less bloodshed involved," William chuckled in response, he was already looking forward to visiting the Norwegian woods. He gestured for the Norwegian Crown Prince to go and retrieve the Norwegian Lady, "Of course, I would be more than happy to properly meet her."

@Odinson