Early Sunday morning, the moving van carrying the twins and their things trudged through heavy snow in Hidden Springs.
Later that evening, Queen Catarina stood at the palace gates, awaiting her two youngest daughters' arrival. She couldn't wait to see them. She'd missed them -- and their drama -- while they were gone.
They walked through the gates nodding to their mother, signaling that they had much to tell her. But there was also much they weren't saying, too.
Yet another snowstorm had turned Hidden Springs into a winter wonderland. The higher elevations received several feet of fresh powder.
Alexandra awoke early the next morning to have breakfast with Queen Catarina. (Anastasia was still fast asleep)
"Tell me, Alexandra," began her mother, "how was college? Was it everything you thought it would be?"
"Yes. And more," raved Alexandra.
"Really? How so?"
"I've had so much fun."
With a twinkle in her blue-gray eyes that suggested quite a different past, Queen Catarina replied, "I bet. I've heard you and your sister have been quite the wild children."
Alexandra cast her mother's comment aside. "Mother -- there's so much technology out there. And it's constantly changing. What we think of as cutting-edge now will be obsolete in just a few months. I'm learning about astronomy, physics, information systems. One of these days, soon, I'm going to be on a manned spacecraft. Come on, I've got something to show you."
Alexandra walked Queen Catarina to the basement. The queen had never been here, although she'd objected to her late husband having this basement built in the first place.
"New toy?" Queen Catarina asked, looking at the machine with decided interest.
Nodding, Alexandra replied, "It's on loan from the university. I have a grant from them to continue my research. I'm doing a dissertation on brain functions in space."
"You know, Alexandra, you've always been interested in science. When you were little, when you weren't driving us all crazy trying every sport there is, you blew up every pot and glass we had. When your father told me that you'd told him you wanted to be an astronaut, I wasn't surprised, although it's not what I wanted for you. Then when you enlisted, I was just, floored. It hit me. I had seen the disaster when all the astronauts blew up in space and died, and I don't want that for you. I didn't know how to react. Your grandfather, King Rudolph, was very much into the sciences. The hospital is named after him."
Meanwhile, Anastasia finally emerged from her bed at nearly eleven in the morning. By then heavy snow was once again falling over Hidden Springs.
She and Lucian had made their way to the Heritage Festival, where one of the featured acts was performing.
Despite the cold, singer Karla T belted out her songs that carried through the chilly alpine air. The crowd -- and the festival chairperson -- were delighted.
"When are you going to start your dissertation?" asked Queen Catarina, sitting with Prince Renauld over breakfast the next morning.
"I've already started it," replied Alexandra while scarfing down pancakes. "In fact, it's almost finished."
Queen Catarina managed a smile. "I hope some of your industriousness rubs off on your sister."
Later that morning, Alexandra went fishing in Hidden Lake, right beside the palace. She had been taught to fish by the Prince when she was a small child, and her love of the rod and reel had continued to the present day.
While roping in her latest catch, she was approached by Lindy Gifford, the reporter from Sim Style who had been assigned to do the feature piece on the Vanderburg twins. She had become a semi-permanent member of the royal press corps. "It's mighty cold out here to be doing that kind of thing."
"I'm a mountain girl," Alexandra bragged, "this is what we do."
"You like to fish?"
"Oh, I love it. So peaceful. My father taught me how to fish when I was a little girl."
"You have any favorite fishing spots, besides this one?"
"Over by Louie Falls. That's a great spot. You could hear the water rushing down. You can be so close to nature."
Despite the snow falling, Lindy feverishly jotted down what Alexandra had told her. "Do you know where your sister is?"
"I think she was going to the festival. You know she's in charge of it."
"Oh, that's right. Well, I'll see you later, enjoy your fishing."
After Alexandra finished fishing she took another icy dip in Hidden Lake.
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