[POTN] 3.5 - The Swan at Evening

The little Swedish prince born in 1661 proved to be a rather energetic boy by royal standards, despite his fragile beginnings. By a few months old, he was already mumbling sentences, while looking at his parents all curious while seeing anything new.

His two older siblings also brought much joy to the royal household. Crown Prince Gustav Rudolf, seven years old, was a quiet but inquisitive boy, close to his mother the Queen. The Queen would often read books with her eldest boy, spoiling him with affection and love. The girl, meanwhile, was closer to her "Aunt Krissie" instead. Princess Kristina's assertive, confident personality captured the heart of little Charlotta, who idolised her from age two on. Charlotta would often stay with Kristina during the latter's reading and studying session at night, listening to her about basically everything.

Growing up under Kristina's influence, Charlotta soon became an assertive little girl in her own right, mimicking her beloved Aunt everywhere. Her elder brother, closer to their gentler mother, was also a gentle boy himself, apparently meeker than his feisty sister.

King Gustav, while a busy man tending to state affairs in the day, always spared a few hours in the evening to be spent with his family. The children all loved their father - for them, Gustav was a funny man who loved to be pranked by them in all ways. Often, Henrietta would even join in the children's mischief, surprising Gustav with the weirdest pranks possible. Still, even with the three kids around, Gustav and Henrietta always took at least an evening every week to be spent only between the two of them, often in their beloved little fort outside Stockholm.

The royal couple would begin their night by watching the sunset together at eventide. Then, sitting together, they would often talk endlessly under the moonshine, until the sun finally rose and both of them were sleepy and fell asleep in each other's embrace. More often than not, they would only wake up by noon, when servants brought the young princes and princess to mess with them. The royal couple would then begin the new day with a smile - and Gustav was hoping nothing more than for such days to be continued into eternity.

The year 1662 passed in relative peace for Gustav and his kingdom - a peace Sweden had not seen in quite some time. The only issue arising was the overspending of the military - which Gustav responded to by downsizing the military by 20%, in order to keep the kingdom's finances sustainable. The Christmas night in 1662 was a relatively small-scale celebration compared to that two years prior. Gustav and Henrietta sought to spend the joyous night with only their closest family members, and only Kristina, Prince Karl, and the latter's family were invited to the little feast held in the Tre Kronor.

The evening passed in peace and joy, with the family feasting on the dishes the servants prepared - the twist being that Henrietta herself joined in the meal preparation. While her cooking wasn't perfect, Gustav still deeply appreciated her attempt - and the little Crown Prince would say everything her mother cooked was perfect. The following days, however, were not so blissful for the family. Henrietta fell slightly ill after the Christmas night, with Gustav largely spending the days before the new year tending to his ill wife.

By the start of 1663, Henrietta largely recovered, and joined the others in the state banquet for the beginning of the new year. She was also with Gustav on the opening of the Riksdag's first session in the new year. Yet, in February, Henrietta fell ill again, this time worse than before. Gustav, always protective of his wife, was absent from the Riksdag for as long as Henrietta was ill, tending to her personally instead of relying on nurses.

This time, nonetheless, Henrietta stayed ill for quite some time. While not worsening by any means, her condition also wasn't improving despite the intervention by court scientists. Gustav, despite the Riksdag's calling, refused to leave his wife's side, and continued staying by her bed almost all day long every single day. Still, Henrietta wasn't extremely ill, and still managed to talk with Gustav for long periods every day. Just like in their favourite fort, the couple would often chat from sunset till it was sunrise, especially in the summer days when nights were fairly short in Stockholm.

The kids, taken care of by royal governesses under the command of Princess Kristina, would also spend some time with their parents every day. Still, Henrietta would be tired out pretty quickly when playing with the kids, and would only recover after a nap in Gustav's arms in their private bedchambers.

Under the heat of June and July, Henrietta's conditions seemed to have improved significantly. For some weeks, she was no longer stuck in bed with her husband all day long, even attending some state functions with her, including the Riksdag.

In the Riksdag, many members were concerned about their Queen's health after King Gustav's rare prolonged absence from the Parliament. Henrietta's presence in a Riksdag session in late July debunked rumours about her condition being supposedly "critical", and even delivered a speech to the Riksdag, reassuring them of her health.

In mid-August, Henrietta, much healthier than before, spent a night with Gustav and their children on a short trip to the Åland Islands, spending a couple of nights on the islands while her children were off exploring the new, intriguing landscapes.

The trip left Henrietta rather exhausted, but she was happy that the family enjoyed the trip a lot. After all, during her illness, Gustav spending all his time with her meant that the entire staff in Tre Kronor had long been rather tense, and a break from the environment was what the children needed.

Yet, after the trip, Henrietta was ill again somehow. Gustav, like always, chose to stay by her side, and the Riksdag was again exploding with worry about their Queen. To that, Henrietta issued a message for the Riksdag on 1st September, assuring that she was in a pleasant condition, and told the Riksdag not to worry. In fact, however, Henrietta was anything but "in a pleasant condition". Following the trip, she became far less energetic than beforehand, and it became significant worse after a few days of cold weather in early September. She was in bed all day long with Gustav by her side, but would often fall asleep after being awake for just an hour or two.

By 7th September, Henrietta had begin coughing pretty badly, and the court physicians advised for the children to stay away from her most of the time. Gustav, meanwhile, refused to leave, and stayed by her bedside even as her condition worsened day by day.

The court physicians were put on high alert after Henrietta complained about chest pain on 12th September. On 14th September, her coughing began producing blood, and Gustav, extremely worried, began spending almost every minute of the day by her side.

That continued for a couple of days, and Gustav was holding onto the hope that it was but a disease, one of many in his beloved's long and eventful life. Yet, beneath all the optimism, he could feel that something was off, and things might not turn out his way this time, like they usually had.

Henrietta woke up in the morning on 18th September feeling slightly better than before. She was able to converse and sitting up for some time, and Gustav took this precious chance to let their children visit their mother. Yet, from the morning, Henrietta felt a surreal feeling - that something seemed to be nearing the end. She could not pinpoint it, but she felt the intense need to say everything she wanted to say to her family, before she could no longer.

For hours, she talked with Gustav and their children, as the sun shined bright above them in the cool autumn day. She spoke about their past, how much she loved them, and what she would love them to become in the distant future.

As the sun began drifting down beneath the horizon, Henrietta could feel the energy draining from her. It was as if God telling her that time was up. She let out some coughing, with a new wave of pain string at her chest - she knew it was time to say what she wanted those her love to remember forever. She first whispered into Gustav's ear, as the once mighty King was holding his beloved, his body trembling with disbelief and grief:

"Miss me, my love, but weep not. I shall be blessing you from above, smiling at your every victory and happiness. Be with those you love, because I shall always be happy as long as you are happy."

Then she looked at the children - the three little lives she gave birth to. Scanning the faces of each of them - and Gustav's - for one last time, she took a difficult breath, and spoke with certainty, making sure they would remember:

"I love you all forever."

With that, she closed her eyes, her soft body falling into Gustav's arms. Gustav wanted to cry - but he could not. He could not believe the woman who had been there for him for so long is gone, just like that, at just thirty-seven.

The kids, still little, could not yet fully understand the weight of loss. Yet, Rudolf, at eight, was already crying, holding onto his mother's unmoving arms with the strength of a desperate man. His siblings, still confused, stared at the scene - but even their eyes were filled with the heaviness of grief.

Gustav looked up from the window - and it was precisely the moment as the sun dipped below the horizon, not to be seen anymore. The eventide sky darkened, as if mourning the greatest loss a mighty King could have suffered. Then there it was - an elegant swan, raising her wings, flying onto the sky as the stars began appearing with the sunlight gone. The swan looked back at Tre Kronor for a few seconds, staring right into the chamber Gustav is in.

Gustav could feel like the swan was bidding him farewell - not only to him, but also to the children. Was it her? Gustav wished to believe so - that the she was now free to soar in the skies like she always wanted to. Recovering from the shock and disbelief, tears finally ran down Gustav's cheeks, and he could no longer control it. He cried and cried through the night, hugging Henrietta's body, as if trying to revive her by sheer willpower alone.

Kristina, also shocked by the sudden loss, decided to give her brother some time, taking the children back to their own chambers at night. Gustav simply stayed there, and through the next day, as if he could no longer think of anything but the immense loss he had just suffered.

For weeks, he was only going through the motions - attending mourning sessions, giving hollow speeches, arranging different events - it was only when planning Henrietta's funeral could he focus for some time - he was desperate to give his beloved the farewell she deserved more than anyone.

Gustav handpicked 1st November, 1663, as the funeral date - All Saints' Day, a day for everyone to commemorate their bygone. All details of the ceremony were decided by Gustav personally, who, believing Henrietta's spirit would be watching, was determined to make the ceremony one that she would love. And just as he wished, a grand funeral - perhaps the grandest in history for any Queen of Sweden, went smoothly as prepared on 1st November. Gustav broke into uncontrollable tears while giving the speech as Henrietta's husband - but perhaps that only proved further how deep their bond was.

Even the children, sitting at the front row, could not hold their tears back amidst the mournful atmosphere. Countless who had worked with the late Queen knew how gentle Henrietta was, and thousands, if not tens of thousands, paid their respect on the day on the streets of Stockholm.

Yet, as everyone left after the burial, Gustav could not bring himself to leave. He say there, before the tombstone, sometimes sobbing in silence, sometimes smiling in tears thinking of the love they once had. He couldn't stop thinking about the swan - and the meaning in her eyes when she stared back mid-soar.

When he finally fell asleep next to the gravestone, his fingers were tracing the words he himself wrote for Henriette on the gravestone, engraved by the most proficient craftsmen:

"Forever blessed, forever in joy and bliss."