The Calm Sea 1/?
Sep. 12th, 2015 10:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bachmanroadRating: T
Pairings: None
Characters: Denmark, Norway, and human characters
Warnings: Historical, warfare and revolution mentioning
Author's Notes: I decided to sit down and rewrite this story properly, to say the least. I'm happy how this chapter turned out than I originally posted and convinced. There's a proper introduction, more depth in places I thought were lacking and so on. I'm also adding the dates, just for indexing and chronological reasons. That's about it really, so read on!
March 9th, 1912
Eventually, sunlight broke through the heavy clouds and warmed Kristiania from its otherwise chilly morning. By noon, the capital was quite comfortable with the change of temperature, as well as the gentle breeze that blew from the south. The change in weather brought more people outside and some even decided to spend their whole day enjoying the balmy conditions. Others however, with previous or soon to be obligations, could only look at the sunshine for a brief moment of appreciation and then press onward with their busy schedules. Norway was one of those people who could only glance at the beautiful day.
Although the change of weather was tempting, the blond ultimately turned back to the stacks of paper that had been gathering on his desk since the early morning. Work needed to be done and he couldn’t let himself get either distracted or behind on it. Besides, if the afternoon shapes up to be like the midday was currently so, Norway will be enjoying the sunshine while having coffee with Denmark. Until then he would just have to push thoughts that encouraged him to slack off aside and stay preoccupied. But he did allow himself to take a break every now and then, when needed of course.
Norway sits his pencil down and scoots his chair back a little to stretch his legs. A soft grunt escapes from his mouth when he feels the joints in his legs pop and he reaches up to massage the crink in his neck that’s been pestering him for quite some time now. Scooting forward again, he reads over his writing carefully and then grabs his pencil when seeing the spelling mistakes he’s made. Luckily there’s not an abundant of mistakes and he owes that to being quicker to catch them. Norway sets his paper down and turns to look outside the window.
The sun is shining, clouds fill the sky with their puffiness, and the sea appears to be as calm as it can be. A gentle breeze flows through the open pane, rustling the thin curtains and then brushes past Norway’s face. He takes in a deep breath and faintly smells the saltiness of the air. He sighs then, leaning back into his chair and closes his eyes. His lips stretch into a little smile.
There’s a firm knock at his door. Norway blinks and remembers this isn’t the front porch of his seaside cottage, but the bureaucratic office he works from when there’s not a prime minister’s hand to shake or attend a queen’s coronation. The blond sits properly and then clears his throat. “Come in,” he says, the smile disappearing from his face.
It’s one of the many, many lackeys that swarm throughout the building, their ages ranging from a chipper eighteen to a weathered fifty-five. The man holding the door to Norway’s office open looks about thirty and the blond vaguely recalls his name to be Sigurd. “Good day sir, I have today’s mail for you.” the lackey informs.
Norway nods in approval and eyes a few letters when they’re dropped on his desk before turning back to the paper he’d been writing previously. He can only write a few more sentences before realising Sigurd is still there, standing quietly before his desk. “Is there something you need…?” Norway wonders.
“No sir, I,” Sigurd sucks in a breath and runs a hand through his chestnut locks. He musters up the courage to look his country in the eye. “Well actually sir, I’m afraid I have some bad news for you.” he said.
Norway raises an eyebrow and then sets his pencil aside. “What sort of bad news?” he asks, leaning forward. Whatever it is, it couldn’t be worse than what’s been making the front page these days; China’s emperor stepping down for a new republic, Germany butting heads with England over their respective navies, and recently, using dirigibles to drop bombs in Tripolitania? The blond was impressed with Italy’s initiative in latter. But in his opinion, it was rather excessive firepower for a sandy stretch of the Mediterranean.
“Well, you know how you’re supposed to be making a voyage to New York this upcoming April?” Sigurd waits as the Norwegian nods slowly. “There seems to be a change of plans, unfortunately.” he adds with a nervous smile.
While it’s certainly not the worst news he’s heard, but it’s enough to make Norway frown just a tad. He sighs in annoyance and then crosses his fingers. “What sort of changes?” he asks, cocking his head a little to the right.
Sigurd swallows thickly and Norway rolls his eyes at this. Really, there’s nothing to be nervous about; he’s not going to be terribly upset with a change in his travel plans. Finally the lackey gathers the courage to speak once more. “Unfortunately, the ocean liner you had booked for your passage recently cancelled its voyage.” Sigurd reluctantly admits.
Regrettably, Norway feels his brow crease into a deeper frown. “I see.” he sighs again, hands folding flat against the polished wood of his desk, while the lackey goes on to explain about an engine room fire that was likely the cause of cancellation. The blond drums his fingers along the desktop. “I suppose I won’t be goin’ to New York then.” he concludes in a flat tone.
Sigurd’s eyes widen in shock. “Oh no!” he takes a step forward, his hand flying up. “Oh no, no, sir, I didn’t mean to imply that at all!” the man insists.
He pulls a notepad from his vest and flips through a couple of pages, batting his eyes to Norway once a while until he reaches the page he wants with a soft ‘ah’. “Yes, your voyage on that ship has been cancelled, but we did manage to find another ship. The good news is that this one will be making the crossing to New York in roughly the same time period, so it won’t be too much of a hiccup in your schedule.” Sigurd details.
Norway stares at him for a moment and then shakes his head in approval. “Very well then.” he waves off. The lackey quickly shuffles out of the room, leaving him alone with his writing. Norway can only write a few more sentences before pausing again. He sets his pencil aside and turns to the window.
“Great…” he huffs.
Peaking around noon, sunshine becomes scarce as clouds begin to crowd much of the sky. There’s a shift in wind; it’s no longer the gentle breeze that wisps the curtains but a blunt gush that makes the trees sway and turn the sea choppy. But it’s not terribly blunt and most people enjoy their afternoon regardless, albeit keeping a close eye on things that might get blown away.
Denmark snatches his napkin just in time before it gets the chance to flutter away. He tucks it underneath his plate and then looks over to Norway, who stirs his coffee slowly. They catch each other for a moment before Norway shifts his sight over toward the whiteness of the table cloth. Denmark raises an eyebrow then, and lowers the hand reaching for the biscuits again. “What’s the matter? Yer more quite than usual.” he asks.
The blond looks up to him and then sighs, easing back into his chair. “Got some bad news at work. There’s been a change of plans; my ship’s been switched.” Norway replies. He watches as a smile stretches across Denmark’s face. It’s that rather goofy smile of his, which makes Norway’s brow crease into a frown once more.
“And that’s it?” Denmark chuckles and crosses his arms. “That happens all the time. Nothin’ to be worked up about.” he chuckles some more – only to be cut off midway when Norway flicks a sugar cube at him.
“I ain’t mad, just annoyed. Told me at the last minute, mind you.” Norway went on. Setting his spoon aside, he takes a sip of his coffee and then relaxes his brow. “But I suppose it’s not that bad. They’ve been promising me that the change in ships will be for the better.” he adds afterwards.
“There ‘ya go, keep lookin’ on the bright side! Yer still goin’ to New York.” Denmark said with a grin. He reaches for the biscuits again and takes a bite out of one. “So do ‘ya need a travel buddy on this new ship yer sailin’ on?” the blond asks while munching.
Norway shakes his head, “I could care less about the ship; as long as I get there smoothly, I’ll be fine.” he insists.
Further Notes
On January 1st, 1912, the Republic of China was proclaimed. A month later, on February 12th, 1912, Emperor Puyi abdicated his throne, thus ending the Qing Dynasty of China, which had then reigned for almost three hundred years.
Since the country’s unification, Germany was rapidly establishing itself to be a great power. In addition to its vigorous industrialization, scientific achievements, and the world’s strongest army, Germany was rapidly building up its naval fleet, which alarmed the United Kingdom, whose naval supremacy could’ve been seriously challenged by the Germans.
On September 29th, 1911, the Italo-Turkish War erupted between Italy and the Ottoman Empire over the control of Tripolitania, which Italy had claims to dating back to 1877-1878 , in wake of Turkey’s defeat in the Russo-Turkish War. On March 6th, 1912, Italian forces became the first to use airships in war, as dirigibles dropped bombs on Turkish forces encamped at Janzur, from an altitude of 6,000 feet.
Pairings: None
Characters: Denmark, Norway, and human characters
Warnings: Historical, warfare and revolution mentioning
Author's Notes: I decided to sit down and rewrite this story properly, to say the least. I'm happy how this chapter turned out than I originally posted and convinced. There's a proper introduction, more depth in places I thought were lacking and so on. I'm also adding the dates, just for indexing and chronological reasons. That's about it really, so read on!
March 9th, 1912
Eventually, sunlight broke through the heavy clouds and warmed Kristiania from its otherwise chilly morning. By noon, the capital was quite comfortable with the change of temperature, as well as the gentle breeze that blew from the south. The change in weather brought more people outside and some even decided to spend their whole day enjoying the balmy conditions. Others however, with previous or soon to be obligations, could only look at the sunshine for a brief moment of appreciation and then press onward with their busy schedules. Norway was one of those people who could only glance at the beautiful day.
Although the change of weather was tempting, the blond ultimately turned back to the stacks of paper that had been gathering on his desk since the early morning. Work needed to be done and he couldn’t let himself get either distracted or behind on it. Besides, if the afternoon shapes up to be like the midday was currently so, Norway will be enjoying the sunshine while having coffee with Denmark. Until then he would just have to push thoughts that encouraged him to slack off aside and stay preoccupied. But he did allow himself to take a break every now and then, when needed of course.
Norway sits his pencil down and scoots his chair back a little to stretch his legs. A soft grunt escapes from his mouth when he feels the joints in his legs pop and he reaches up to massage the crink in his neck that’s been pestering him for quite some time now. Scooting forward again, he reads over his writing carefully and then grabs his pencil when seeing the spelling mistakes he’s made. Luckily there’s not an abundant of mistakes and he owes that to being quicker to catch them. Norway sets his paper down and turns to look outside the window.
The sun is shining, clouds fill the sky with their puffiness, and the sea appears to be as calm as it can be. A gentle breeze flows through the open pane, rustling the thin curtains and then brushes past Norway’s face. He takes in a deep breath and faintly smells the saltiness of the air. He sighs then, leaning back into his chair and closes his eyes. His lips stretch into a little smile.
There’s a firm knock at his door. Norway blinks and remembers this isn’t the front porch of his seaside cottage, but the bureaucratic office he works from when there’s not a prime minister’s hand to shake or attend a queen’s coronation. The blond sits properly and then clears his throat. “Come in,” he says, the smile disappearing from his face.
It’s one of the many, many lackeys that swarm throughout the building, their ages ranging from a chipper eighteen to a weathered fifty-five. The man holding the door to Norway’s office open looks about thirty and the blond vaguely recalls his name to be Sigurd. “Good day sir, I have today’s mail for you.” the lackey informs.
Norway nods in approval and eyes a few letters when they’re dropped on his desk before turning back to the paper he’d been writing previously. He can only write a few more sentences before realising Sigurd is still there, standing quietly before his desk. “Is there something you need…?” Norway wonders.
“No sir, I,” Sigurd sucks in a breath and runs a hand through his chestnut locks. He musters up the courage to look his country in the eye. “Well actually sir, I’m afraid I have some bad news for you.” he said.
Norway raises an eyebrow and then sets his pencil aside. “What sort of bad news?” he asks, leaning forward. Whatever it is, it couldn’t be worse than what’s been making the front page these days; China’s emperor stepping down for a new republic, Germany butting heads with England over their respective navies, and recently, using dirigibles to drop bombs in Tripolitania? The blond was impressed with Italy’s initiative in latter. But in his opinion, it was rather excessive firepower for a sandy stretch of the Mediterranean.
“Well, you know how you’re supposed to be making a voyage to New York this upcoming April?” Sigurd waits as the Norwegian nods slowly. “There seems to be a change of plans, unfortunately.” he adds with a nervous smile.
While it’s certainly not the worst news he’s heard, but it’s enough to make Norway frown just a tad. He sighs in annoyance and then crosses his fingers. “What sort of changes?” he asks, cocking his head a little to the right.
Sigurd swallows thickly and Norway rolls his eyes at this. Really, there’s nothing to be nervous about; he’s not going to be terribly upset with a change in his travel plans. Finally the lackey gathers the courage to speak once more. “Unfortunately, the ocean liner you had booked for your passage recently cancelled its voyage.” Sigurd reluctantly admits.
Regrettably, Norway feels his brow crease into a deeper frown. “I see.” he sighs again, hands folding flat against the polished wood of his desk, while the lackey goes on to explain about an engine room fire that was likely the cause of cancellation. The blond drums his fingers along the desktop. “I suppose I won’t be goin’ to New York then.” he concludes in a flat tone.
Sigurd’s eyes widen in shock. “Oh no!” he takes a step forward, his hand flying up. “Oh no, no, sir, I didn’t mean to imply that at all!” the man insists.
He pulls a notepad from his vest and flips through a couple of pages, batting his eyes to Norway once a while until he reaches the page he wants with a soft ‘ah’. “Yes, your voyage on that ship has been cancelled, but we did manage to find another ship. The good news is that this one will be making the crossing to New York in roughly the same time period, so it won’t be too much of a hiccup in your schedule.” Sigurd details.
Norway stares at him for a moment and then shakes his head in approval. “Very well then.” he waves off. The lackey quickly shuffles out of the room, leaving him alone with his writing. Norway can only write a few more sentences before pausing again. He sets his pencil aside and turns to the window.
“Great…” he huffs.
Peaking around noon, sunshine becomes scarce as clouds begin to crowd much of the sky. There’s a shift in wind; it’s no longer the gentle breeze that wisps the curtains but a blunt gush that makes the trees sway and turn the sea choppy. But it’s not terribly blunt and most people enjoy their afternoon regardless, albeit keeping a close eye on things that might get blown away.
Denmark snatches his napkin just in time before it gets the chance to flutter away. He tucks it underneath his plate and then looks over to Norway, who stirs his coffee slowly. They catch each other for a moment before Norway shifts his sight over toward the whiteness of the table cloth. Denmark raises an eyebrow then, and lowers the hand reaching for the biscuits again. “What’s the matter? Yer more quite than usual.” he asks.
The blond looks up to him and then sighs, easing back into his chair. “Got some bad news at work. There’s been a change of plans; my ship’s been switched.” Norway replies. He watches as a smile stretches across Denmark’s face. It’s that rather goofy smile of his, which makes Norway’s brow crease into a frown once more.
“And that’s it?” Denmark chuckles and crosses his arms. “That happens all the time. Nothin’ to be worked up about.” he chuckles some more – only to be cut off midway when Norway flicks a sugar cube at him.
“I ain’t mad, just annoyed. Told me at the last minute, mind you.” Norway went on. Setting his spoon aside, he takes a sip of his coffee and then relaxes his brow. “But I suppose it’s not that bad. They’ve been promising me that the change in ships will be for the better.” he adds afterwards.
“There ‘ya go, keep lookin’ on the bright side! Yer still goin’ to New York.” Denmark said with a grin. He reaches for the biscuits again and takes a bite out of one. “So do ‘ya need a travel buddy on this new ship yer sailin’ on?” the blond asks while munching.
Norway shakes his head, “I could care less about the ship; as long as I get there smoothly, I’ll be fine.” he insists.
Further Notes
On January 1st, 1912, the Republic of China was proclaimed. A month later, on February 12th, 1912, Emperor Puyi abdicated his throne, thus ending the Qing Dynasty of China, which had then reigned for almost three hundred years.
Since the country’s unification, Germany was rapidly establishing itself to be a great power. In addition to its vigorous industrialization, scientific achievements, and the world’s strongest army, Germany was rapidly building up its naval fleet, which alarmed the United Kingdom, whose naval supremacy could’ve been seriously challenged by the Germans.
On September 29th, 1911, the Italo-Turkish War erupted between Italy and the Ottoman Empire over the control of Tripolitania, which Italy had claims to dating back to 1877-1878 , in wake of Turkey’s defeat in the Russo-Turkish War. On March 6th, 1912, Italian forces became the first to use airships in war, as dirigibles dropped bombs on Turkish forces encamped at Janzur, from an altitude of 6,000 feet.
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