That mood was going to last for as long as I forced it to. Things were going to be so much easier if I just let myself relax. And I did. Even when I met the prince, I refused to let my nerves get the better of me.
I'm not sure what they call the guys who announce every lord and lady who comes into a ballroom, but whoever that guy was, he asked what he should announce me as. Here was the time, and I could watch the royal family, and most importantly, Prince Fortinbras, and their reactions to someone coming to the court of Norway from the country where the man who had killed their king was from. And from there I could decide how to behave.
"Lady Corrine, lady in waiting to Queen Gertrude of Denmark," I said quietly to him. Anette smiled encouragingly to me. At least I would have her on my side as I walked in. And I couldn't forget that I looked great. It made me stand taller. I remembered how Queen Gertrude walked, and tried to emulate that as the announcer called out my name. The prince, who I could tell by his crown, looked up quickly, almost like he was a marionette and the person holding his strings had tugged roughly. I couldn't gage his facial expression from so far away, but he was watching me.
I took a deep breath and started down the stairs. Why did the main character always have to descend a staircase while everyone was watching her? Didn't they realize how difficult it was in heels? And you couldn't watch your feet like I desperately wanted to. You had to watch whoever was the important person in the room. If Fortinbras was anything like Claudius, direct eye contact would throw him off, so I had to keep doing it.
Finally I made it to the bottom of the stairs, and I sighed in relief. Stairs had never seemed so endless. They were still watching me and I felt like I should have been wearing glass slippers. But until then, I had Anette, and she was already pulling me through the ground, introducing all kinds of people whose names I would never remember. But she was pulling me toward the other end of the room for the only introduction that mattered.
It took several minutes to reach the other end of the ballroom. Not because of the size of the room, but because so many people wanted to talk to my companion. Although I tried to contribute to the conversation, there really wasn't all that much that I could say, and my eyes kept going toward Fortinbras. Every time I looked at him, I could see he was looking my way, but even as we got closer, I couldn't tell what he was thinking. He kept his expression politely blank, which I was sure was something they teach you at prince school. Don't let anyone know if you're offended and they'll never see your revenge coming. Just like in the play, so I had a little bit of information. Unfortunately, there wasn't all I could figure out by his character, since he didn't have much of an appearance.
Luckily, I did know something he didn't, in case I needed it. Fortinbras could just wait it out, if he knew the events of Hamlet's play. Not the play within the play, but the actual play. You know what I mean. If the Norwegian prince knew what I knew, he would know that Elsinore would soon fall apart, and he could just come in and take it. But luckily, he had no such knowledge, and I knew his want for revenge because I shared it now. Claudius was despicable, and I would do almost anything to be rid of him. I hated him more than I had ever hated anyone in my real life.
In my quick glances, I put together a picture of Fortinbras. He was tall and broad, with long blonde hair. He almost reminded me of a King Arthur type, a man who would look at home holding a sword aloft, or pulling one out of a stone. He had a beard that suited him, and sharp green eyes that surprised me, since I had expected the blue eyes that surrounded me.
Finally Anette and I made it to the front (back?) of the room. The people nearest to us quieted. They wanted to see what their prince would think of a Danish girl coming into their court. Anette introduced me with a big smile. "Fortinbras, may I introduce Corrine. She's a lady from the court in Denmark. I met her on the boat ride over, and she's absolutely delightful."
