“So, what happened with Red Riding Hood after that?” Elizabeth asked as she and the other girls gathered around Elly in the garden.

“Well,” Elly said. “She went off on a new adventure.”

“What kind of adventure?” a girl asked.

“Whatever she happened to pass by,” Elly answered. “I believe the next tale was with a certain French gentleman sporting a blue beard.”

A collective gasp echoed across the group of young girls.

“I’ve never heard of Red Riding Hood told this way before,” said one girl.

“It’s certainly not by the Grimm’s,” said another.

“I think I like Elly’s story better,” said Elizabeth as she sat by the tiny campfire across from Elly. “It seemed like it could have actually happened.”

The other girls nodded in agreement.

“But enough of fairy tales,” Elizabeth continued. “It’s already getting too late and we’ve only little time left until we’re off for bed. I think we should talk about other things.”

“What did you have in mind, Lilibet?” Elly said.

“We’ll each take turns asking questions, and the other has to answer.”

“Don’t we do that anyways?” asked another girl.

The others giggled in unison.

“So, who wants to start?” asked a girl.

“I’ll do the honors,” said Elizabeth, turning towards Elly. “Do you have anyone that fancies you?”

Elly blinked. Her mouth hung open as she faltered to reply in her usual timely and graceful manner. Instead, she stared blankly at the girls waiting with bated breath.

She let out a sigh and shrugged. “At this moment, I suppose I do.”

The girls squealed. Elizabeth waved her hand, shushing at them.

“Who is it?” Elizabeth asked. “Is he someone we might know?”

“It’s probably Benjamin,” replied one of the girls. “He’s been giving her fanciful looks lately.”

Elly giggled but shook her head. “No, not him.”

“What about Richard?” Elizabeth asked.

“No, he’s not someone from here,” Elly said. “The boy is from Germany.”

“A German?” asked a girl.

“What’s his name?” asked another.

Elly paused for a moment, looking up at the starry sky. Revealing his identity to them felt a bit embarrassing. She chuckled to herself before turning her attention back to her dear friends. “Herr Wolf.” The name rolled off her tongue like filth from the laundry.

The girls looked at each other in confusion.

“Wolf? Like the one in your tale?!” asked the youngest of the bunch.

Elly clutched her sides and let out a hearty laugh. So wrong, yet so hilariously right.

“He does somewhat resemble the wolf,” Elly said. “But yes, he has a German name, being from Germany and all.”

“Do you fancy him?” Elizabeth asked who was now sitting next to Elly.

Elly stared at her and made a half-hearted smile. “Not particularly. I don’t dislike him, yet.”

“He troubles you?” Elizabeth asked.

Elly shook her head. “No.”

“What’s wrong then?” Elizabeth asked.

“Mmm, I think I left too big of an impression on him,” Elly said. Thinking back on her first encounter with him all those years ago in the opera where Wagner performed Lohengrin, she never could have predicted meeting such a peculiar fellow that almost made her want him as her kindred. What a mistake that would have been.

“Leaving a big impression on someone isn’t such a bad thing,” Elizabeth said.

“What sort of impression were they?” asked a girl.

Elly stood up and meandered around the group, watching as all eyes glued to her every move. She smiled and spoke lyrically, “Herr Wolf loved my fair. O happy fair! He said my eyes were like blue skies, and my tongue’s sweet air more tunable than lark to a shepherd’s ear. He said ‘were the world mine, Germany being bated, the rest I’d give to you translated.”

“Is that Shakespeare?” Elizabeth asked.

“Helena said that,” said one of the other girl. “I saw that play once, at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre with my mother.”

“Oh, I’ve always wanted to go see Shakespeare,” said another.

“I heard it’s only proper for a lady to know a bit of Shakespeare,” said another. “I’ve only read a bit of the play but I always wanted to see it in the theatre.”

“Perhaps we can all go see a play for our next outing,” said Elizabeth, now following Elly around. The other girls stood and paced around the campfire.

“What’s your favorite theatre that you’ve been to?” one of the girls asked.

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“I liked the Duke of York’s Theatre,” said one. “It’s got such lavish seating.”

“The Palace Theatre is nice as well,” said another.

“Which theatre do you like the most, Elly?” Elizabeth asked, walking closer to her friend.

Elly tapped her chin in thought before giving her reply. “It’s hard to pick a favorite. I’ve been to them all and they all have their own charm. But I think I’ll enjoy the theatre that Herr Wolf is building.”

The girls gasped.

Elizabeth quirked an eyebrow. “He’s building a theatre? In Germany?”

“How big will it be?” asked another girl.

Elly spun around and spread her arms open. “It’ll span the entirety of Europe.”

The girls laughed, including Elly and Elizabeth.

“Stop being silly, no theatre can be that massive,” said a girl.

“Oh, I trust him to be thorough,” Elly said. “That’s partly why I’m here in London, so I’ll be able to see the entire stage.”

“What’s the other part of you being here then?” Elizabeth asked. “Aside for being a dear friend of mine.”

Elly smiled with her usual coyness. “Well, partly because your most gracious and generous mother and father wanted the best and loveliest tutor to teach you French.”

“Merci,” Elizabeth said as she curtsied.

Elly curtsied as well, then her smile faded. “And partly to escape Herr Wolf’s advances.”

“Why?” Elizabeth asked. “He sounds like a gentleman.”

“He’s driven by obsession,” Elly said. “And his obsession is misplaced.”

“So you came here to distance yourself from him?” Elizabeth asked.

“Yes,” Elly said. “But I’m afraid he’ll come for me soon and take me, despite my wishes.”

“Well, that’s not very gentleman-like,” said one girl while the others nodded.

Elizabeth held Elly’s hands and looked at her friend with conviction. “Well, you are in no safer company than mine. I won’t let someone like him cause you any grief. This I promise you.”

Elly smiled proudly and embraced her. Oh, so adorable this girl. She was far from the mistake that was Herr Wolf.

“Thank you,” Elly said.

“We’ll also do our best to keep you safe,” said another of the girls. “It is our pledge as members of the First Buckingham Palace Company.” The girls cheered.

Elly giggled and gripped Elizabeth’s hand gently. “I couldn’t have asked for better company, and it’s all thanks to the grace and good fortune of our leader and future monarch, Elizabeth.”

Elizabeth blushed at her friend’s remark. The other girls clapped for them.

“I’m not doing this just because of my status, Elly,” Elizabeth said. “It’s because you’ve been a good friend to me. I know you’d do the same for me.”

“Of course I would,” said Elly. She released her grip and placed her hand over her chest as she bowed before Elizabeth. “I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of your great imperial family to which we all belong.”

The girls applauded and soon were joined by the servants standing by at the summerhouse.

“Elly,” Elizabeth said, looking awed at her declaration.

“May I have a dance with you?” Elly asked. “As a small token of my thanks for your comfort.”

“Um, well, I suppose,” said Elizabeth. “But I’m still not good at dancing.”

“It’s alright,” said Elly. “I’ll lead this once. I’m sure you’ll pick it up quickly.”

Elly held Elizabeth’s hands once more before turning to face the other girls.

“Girls, may you sing for our fairest friend?” Elly asked.

The girls smiled and nodded. They collected themselves and hummed together before releasing their angelic voices in a choir fit for the two exalted beings before them.

God save our gracious Queen

Long live our noble Queen

God save our Queen

Elly led Elizabeth in a mesmerizing waltz, turning rhythmically around and around as they danced around the campfire. She saw Elizabeth’s eyes transfixed to her own as if she were looking at an idol.

Send her victorious

Happy and glorious

Elly leaned close and whispered softly into Elizabeth’s ear. “Can you promise me one thing, Lilibet?”

“What is it?” Elizabeth asked.

“Promise me that you’ll live a long life, and that you’ll keep being such an adorable girl?”

Elizabeth giggled at her friend’s request. “What a silly thing to ask. You think I’ll still be adorable when I’m all old and grey?”

“Of course,” Elly answered. “You’d still be the adorable little girl that I’ve come to know and love, even when your curls live in perpetual winter.”

“And I’ll bet yours will still be as bright as a field of wheat beneath perpetual summer?” Elizabeth asked, and they both giggled.

Long to reign over us

God save the Queen

“While I can’t promise that I’d get to live a long life,” said Elizabeth as she continued following her friend’s expert lead. “I’ll try my best to make it happen. I suppose it’s better to live a long one than a short one.” They giggled once more.

“I can relate to that,” said Elly.

O Lord our God arise

Scatter her enemies

And make them fall

Elly noticed Elizabeth’s eyes closed as she continued their waltz. Her face was one of bliss as if dreaming of some prince charming.

“What are you imagining right now?” Elly asked.

“That we’re dancing in the palace, and everyone is gathered to watch us,” Elizabeth answered as she opened her eyes. “You should try it. Imagine.”

Elly chuckled and slowly closed her eyes.

Confound their politics

Frustrate their knavish tricks

She imagined herself at the theatre, the soft grass underneath her feet becoming a scorched, barren earth. Scattered bodies of men in tattered uniforms span into the horizon beneath a crimson sky. She danced around the bodies, leading her waltz through rivulets of blood that trickled between as she followed the explosions that peppered the land and sky like drums and cymbals of an orchestra.

The marionette that was her dance partner moved at Elly’s every whim, seeming to enjoy being swept off its feet. The waltz continued on, and on, an endless rise and fall. Soon, a bright light pierces the blotted sky, enveloping the dancers in its glow. The battered landscape shifted into a field of flowers as Elly opened her eyes.

Ah, the future will be so bright up ahead.

On Thee our

hopes we fix

God save us all