[Malta] A Vacation To The Most Serene Republic

[Amber]

Ashley had been stuck in a perpetual cycle of work and worry for quite some time. No matter what she did or where she went, she couldn't find time to relax. But what was most taxing was that she was being bombarded with phone calls and inquiries from members of the House of Scholars regarding new legislation that the House is considering. Apparently, the newest tactic in debate is being able to say, "The Crown would support this, she told me so." While its popularity was growing in the Maltese legislature, Ashley was quickly getting sick of it. She couldn't sleep, she didn't want to eat, and she was getting depressed. She needed to leave. She just had to get away. One Thursday evening she went into her private chambers and pulled out an atlas of the world. She brushed her finger over the many states of Europe until she was reminded of the tiny republic called "San Marino". San Marino is a land-locked country that shares a border with Italy on all sides. Its population enjoys a high standard of living and it has many of the wonderful trappings of Italy, while also having a uniqueness of its own. Ashley decided it would be the perfect place for her to get away.

She called Michael on a secure line from her chambers in San Anton Palace, and informed him of what she intended to do. He offered to assist her in the workload, but it seemed that she had her mind made up. He told her that he would inform the High Command and the President of The House of Scholars that she was going on a vacation for Friday plus the weekend. She made it clear that she wanted to go alone, because she needed to decompress. A small contingent of White Knights would accompany her to San Marino, and the Maltese Ambassador to Italy would travel to San Marino where he would stay in a nearby hotel in case something happened in Malta and the government needed to communicate with Ashley. Other than that, she was on her own and left to her own devices. That night, a secure message was sent from the Maltese Minister of Foreign Affairs to the Italian and Sammarinese governments, informing them that Ashley was going to make a low-profile vacation to San Marino. Not wanting to snub the Italian government, the message also said Ashley would make a brief visit with the King of Italy when she landed in Rome, if the Italian government was willing. No specific time was given, other than "Friday afternoon."

Ashley requested that her servants pack her clothes. She turned in for bed, not even bothering to slip into her pajamas. She was no longer on a strict schedule. The young princess slept in, took a shower, and got dressed for the day. Her things were already waiting at a chartered aircraft at Malta's international airport. She told Michael goodbye, and departed Maltese airspace. The Italian government was informed of her departure thirty minutes in advance. In order to avoid inconvenience the King, Ashley elected to travel to his Palace to greet him instead of implying that he should come to the airport. However, it was made very clear that Ashley's visit to the Italian peninsula was a private affair and that the public was unaware that she had departed from Malta. She intended to keep it that way. Once in Rome, she and the White Knights accompanying her took whatever necessary car-rides and escorts to get to the King's Palace. The White Knights, who were dressed in their signature white suits and white ties, waited outside by the motorcade. Italy was a friendly nation of Malta, so advanced security measures were not required. Ashley patiently waited to be escorted to the King.

 

[Logan]

Whap! Slice! Bang!

The sounds echoed throughout the Quirinial palace. The King was in yet another one of his fencing matches. This time not against one of his skilled knights or sparring partners, but with someone who nonetheless could at least defend themselves against the King, and provide a target which was challenging to hit. "C'mon now, no banter? Most of my oppenents love banter."

"Your Maj-"

"Wow, what's with people and not treating my round-table as, well, a round table?"

"Your Ma- Vincenzo, your friend from the Knights of St Maurice already warned-"

The oppenent slid backwards to try and avoid Vicenzo's opportunistic lunge, failing as the sabre struck the base of his neck, still leaving a stinging feeling through all the kevlar. "-me about that. Touché."

"That was a good match, Sergeant, perhaps once you've taken some classes after earning your commission, we'll have a damn fine rematch."

Right as they sat their sabres on the racks and started to remove their gear-
"-Your Majesty! We've received a call from Her Grace the Sovereign Princess of Malta."

Vincenzo's ears perked a bit at the sound of this. He had been planning on getting things in order with Italy's southern neighbor, it seemed that Providence had brought her to start the process.
"-and?"

"In a little over an hour she'll be landing in Rome-"

"- An Hour?! That's hardly enough time for me to wash up and change, much less to get the airpo-"

"She'll be driven to meet you here, no need to meet-"

"Good! Good then, have someone make sure that Rozenn is ready."

"Your Maj-"

"Quick!"

His Personal Aide, a Knight-Aspirant of the orderless knights tasked maintaining the Quirinal Palace and overseeing the King's domestic staff, sighed a heavy sigh, attempting to hide the frustration in his voice

"Yes, your Majesty, I shall have Squire Ferrara brief you on the way to your quarters"


One Hour (and some change) Later

Vincenzo sped out of his quarters, snapping the buttons on the coat of his service greens, rolling the lint roller over his shoulders and collar several more times to make sure they were immaculate, before making sure that they were straight and unwrinkled in perfect fashion. As this was a diplomatic - and a supposedly less formal one at that - event rather than a military one, he had left his cover in his quarters as he walked at a blazingly fast pace - for walking at least - towards his sister's quarters, before taking her by the arm and almost dragging her out to the courtyard where it was customary for the head of state to receive delegations.

Flanked on each side by his fellow tankers - most of whom were Corrazieri - they met the Princess with a humble and polite bow (his sister with a curtsey), before offering a hand to assist her out of the car which she had taken here. If the Princess took the time to pay attention to his appearance, she might notice that his hair was freshly combed - and still wet from his shower post-fencing - and his stubble freshly trimmed, as well as his boots haphazardly shined.

"Your Grace, this visit is unexpected, but most welcome. I hope your travels here were smooth, and I sincerely hope that you will not find neither our hospitality nor the beauty of our country nor that of San Marino lacking."

 

[Amber]

Ashley took the King's hand and stepped from the private car which had been chartered to take her to the Quirinal Palace. She had no earthly idea what the King of Italy looked like, but she assumed he was a polite old man that was old enough to be her grandfather. Ashley wasn't cynical, but she had met enough leaders so far to learn that most of Europe was governed by its elderly population. She was totally taken off-guard when, after taking the King's hand and standing up before him, he was stunningly handsome. Ashley tried to speak, but she couldn't. Her usually pale-white cheeks started to burn a bright red, and she averted her eyes out of shyness. Ashley curtsied to the King, and acknowledged his sister.

"Y-... Um.. Your Majesty, Your Highness. It is very nice to meet you both," she said in a soft voice. This was probably the first opportunity for the King to get a good look at her. She was rather short, standing just above five feet tall. The seventeen year-old's spotless skin was a pale white, and lightly freckled on her face. She had brilliant long red hair that rolled down her back and over her shoulders, it was mostly straight, but somewhat wavy as well. Her Scottish ancestry was quite clear. If he managed to get her to make eye contact again, which she was struggling to do, he would notice that she had sparkling blue eyes. She was wearing one of the dresses that were hand-made by a friend from Milan. The well-fitted dress showed off her figure quite well, but at the same time was also somewhat modest. The entire dress was white, except for a stitched red Maltese cross that was directly over her left breast - it had a diameter about that of a softball. Many of her dresses had to be recently let out in the bust because she was a growing young woman. The length of her dress ended an inch or so above her knees. Wearing such a sundress was considered proper for most formal occasions in Malta, and Ashley was known to have stuck to her nation's dress-expectations with the only exception having been when she visited the United Kingdom.

Unless the King was not very good at reading emotions, he would quickly be able to see the surprise on her face when she saw him, her blushing cheeks, and the words she stumbled upon. While Ashley wasn't seen in the public as often as most other heads of state were, it was known that she was shy around strangers, and was still getting use to international travel. The Princess was suddenly much more interested in getting to know the King rather than a short meet-and-greet like what was originally planned.

 

[Logan]

The King, himself being caught somewhat off guard by the Princess's beauty, would - quickly enough that the Sovereign Princess of Malta might not catch his own surprise, but not enough that the Duchess of Savoy, his sister, wouldn't catch it- regain his composure, thanks to a military discipline that often concealed his youth and inexperience. The (relatively) tall, olive, brown-haired 18-year old flashed the Maltese Princess a knowing smile before offering another curtsey,

"It is nice to meet you, as well, your Grace."

As the Princess exited the car, she would at first notice both of them somewhat towering over her, the King and Duchess standing at 5'9" and 5'5", respectively. The duchess was wearing a simple formal dress, not too much unlike Ashley's, albeit somewhat longer, while the King's service greens were well-pressed, and his left breast was adorned with several ribbons, almost entirely for qualification or training awards, albeit several were for the Orders of Chivalry which the Kingdom had reinstated.

The King, finally able to think somewhat clearly, offered another humble bow, before reciprocating her comment. While he was a disciplined officer and a King who could maintain the image and duty of the crown - and was learning every day to be better at it, he was horrendously inexperienced in having actual experience with meeting new people (much less a beautiful visiting head of state) in a private manner such as this (almost all of his previous dealings similar to this being in military or legislative settings), so, while he himself was intrigued by Ashley, he, at first, assumed her surprise had more to do with his youth, rather than his looks. As such, he answered her expression with a disciplined and confident, yet compassionate and reassuring, smile.

"I also am elated to finally make your acquaintance, your Grace."

Finally realizing that they'd been standing several minutes at the head of the courtyard, Rozenn nudged him to escort Princess Ashley to one of his studies near the Courtyard, before they began their discussion, he would offer Ashley a beverage."

"May I offer you anything to drink?"

 

[Amber]

Inside the study, she would take whatever seat was offered to her. "A glass of water would be nice, if you have one." Since they had driven up to the palace, Ashley seemed to be pretty distracted by the magnificent architecture surrounding them. She lightly tapped one of her fingernails on the glass that was given to her and said, "I am sorry that this visit was on such short notice. I had to get away from home for a few days, so I decided to spend the weekend in San Marino. We have not met before, so I did not want to be rude and skip right past you on my way."

"I am happy to see that Italy has finally stabilized with a proper form of government. It is nice to see a monarchy rise or restored in Europe. Democracy can be a plight on some countries..."

 

[Logan]

"Of Course," one of the King's domestic staff would bring in a pitcher of water, and he would pour himself and the Princess each a glass. Sitting down, he'd take a sip of the water before replying

"Sounds like Quite a nice idea. I could probably use a couple of days off myself, to be honest. And to be fair I was planning on a trip to Malta for diplomacy, It seems fate would have us meet together some way or another."

The King hoped that his Freudian slip - by the unnecessary use of the term together - would somehow go unnoticed by the Princess, or at least that she was in relaxed enough a mindset that she wouldn't be paying too close attention to his words. "It's certainly a fine day when I've a chance to meet such a wonderful head of state, much less a fellow monarch in this world of Republics, Dictatorships, and Empires gone mad."

 

[Amber]

"Yes I-" Ashley hiccupped and then her cheeks returned to their previous state of bright red. She tried to speak again, but out came another hiccup. She drank several gulps of her water and crossed her legs in a bit of a nervous manner. "Well... I think there is a lot we have to discuss. I have been waiting to visit Italy until we felt your internal affairs have simmered down. There is a number of reasons, including the fact that the Italian state is the closest major power to Malta, that I think it would be favorable for us to have a relationship beyond... um, that I think it would be favorable for our countries to have a relationship beyond just that of friendly neighbors."

"I do need to get going, though. Sadly this was only suppose to be a short visit." She gently sloshed the water in her glass back and forth before saying, "But, maybe you could come with me to San Marino? It would be a good excuse to go on a vacation."

 

[Logan]

"I totally agree with your sentiments. We are two people, peoples, bound by strong adherence to a common faith, and our countries' relationship should reflect that."

He'd take a couple of drinks while trying to put on a slight smile that he hoped would have a calming affect on Ashley, though he was taken quite a bit by surprise when she invited him to San Marino with here. While he certainly needed the time off, especially to cool down after the mishap with the now-defunct french government, he was weighing in his mind whether this was really a good idea, especially with the spurred activity that would come from the newly-finished Strait of Messina Bridge, though he eventually decided that the Kingdom would be fine in the capable hands of the Duchess of Savoy and his own staff, and excitedly started to answer.

"That actually sounds like quite a nice Idea, your grace. If you and your escort don't mind, of course. I think I shall take you up on this offer."