Vienna Forever

III

In the end, the truth forces everyone, it does not need external helpers and protectors.

Would it be truth otherwise?

~~~

"It is all his fault. It's the fault of his dammed house!", Austria slammed his fists on the table. It wasn't hard to tell that the man was absolutely furious. On the other side of the table, Vienna was sitting with a neutral facial expression, looking at their nails rather bored. "No, you are wrong. It is not the fault of his house. It is the fault of those damned Habsburgs!", Vienna snarled, looking their father right into his eyes. "But it seems that you only care about your fortune. We both know that the Habsburg will bring us more fortune, more land, more money. But do you only care about yourself? Do you not care about your citizens, your people? You finally have to admit that we, my people, want Přemysl! Is it that strange to wish for everyone to be treated equal? I don't think so!", Vienna spoke, now also getting furious, as she stood up, leaving the room.

"We haven't finished yet", Austria yelled.

"Yes, because I don't let myself get bothered by this absolute nonsense", Vienna yelled in return. She really did wonder if Austria didn't understand the need of the people at all.

"I told you. But you decided not to listen to me. I didn't know what to expect from a capital who is a woman, after all", a small, bypassing, child noticed. Even though Vienna could always manage their Anger, it were comments like this that made their blood boil. "Listen here! I will ignore your degrading comment for once, but if you all are so bothered by a single bloodline's existence, then I, Vienna, the Capital of the Holy Roman Empire of German nation, shall demand a Second Trial where Přemysl's fate shall be decided!", Vienna announced loud enough for also Austria to hear them.

When arriving at the garden, Vienna thought about them getting insulted earlier. It wasn't something new for her to get confronted with those kind of comments or someone underrating her, just because of her being a woman. But this wasn't the first time in which Vienna felt different by receiving those comments. Did she feel irritated because she got misunderstood for being a girl, or was there a different cause?

Nevertheless, Vienna had different things to worry about. Since she was the one demanding a trial, she had to be the one, informing Přemysl and Bohemia, Czech, about it.

Vienna was very fond of Czech, even though she acted strange around Vienna. Whenever Vienna and Czech would be involved in a political arrangements, they got along very well, but Vienna could not remember a single time where Czech dared to look her into the eyes. It was always a strange occasion, since Vienna could not figure out why Czech acted this way around them.

It was not until dusk when Vienna arrived at the King's castle to deliver the message of the upcoming trial. It was not until this moment when Vienna suddenly regretted their prior actions. Vienna was the one to suggest this, after all. But now, she worried about the many things that could go wrong. But to prove herself amongst those underestimating her, Vienna had to follow their decisions and not back down, no matter the outcome.

"Vienna, we've awaited you. Follow me", Czech greeted them monotonously, leading Vienna into the great hall.

"I did everything I could do now, but i promise to do my best in the future. Some may underestimate my power and who I am. That's why it was impossible for me to solve the problem. The least i could do was to call another trial", Vienna pleaded, bowing before Přemysl. "Being underestimated in your powers is something I have faced, my child. We wouldn't have come so far without the help of you and your people, Vienna. I thank you", Přemysl thanked. Vienna felt fluttered, due to someone not underestimating, but thanking them for once.

On the trial's day, Vienna woke up early. She had felt worried for a time now. Despite her long-lasting optimism she was now thinking about various things that can lead to annihilation.

Why were they so worried about a human that would die anyway? Vienna didn't worry about themself- their worries were about her people's well being. Unlike Austria's, Vienna's priorities were the needs of her people.

Even so, Vienna promised herself to win the trail, no matter the loss. She knew how to win fights. She'd also come up with a plan for no one to underestimate them. Vienna needed this trial to be perfect- for the sake of her people. The opportunity to prove themself has finally come.

"Where do you think you are going, young man?", an unknown knight with a surprisingly female sounding voice asked Vienna in front of trial room's closed oaken doors. Vienna didn't answer the question. As she was disguised to pass the trial as a male figure. But being called young man by the knight made Vienna feeling taken aback. Did they feel this way, because being associated as a man meant power? Vienna didn't know, nor care. Though she thought often about this, this was not the problem right now.

"I could ask you the same, unknown knight. Judging your armor, I guess you are from Carinthia, but how do I know?", Vienna asked sassily, shrugging.

"I AM Carinthia", the knight hissed quietly.

"And I am the King of Spain, pleasant to meet you", the other replied sarcastically, entering the room now.

"Your gentlemen, I, Vienna, declare the trial to begin", Vienna announced as they stepped into the room.

It was over. Vienna felt devastated. It couldn't be. How could they lose? Did they really lose, because the wealth of the other houses was more important than people's well being? Vienna had to accept the fact that they had lost, but she couldn't accept the reason for it for gods sake. Before Vienna could react even more negatively, she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Thank you, Vienna. Thank you for the effort you put into all of this. I have to admit, that even I have underestimated you", Czech, who dared to look into Vienna's eyes for the first time, spoke. "No, I have to thank you. You have inspired me to even be on your side. I shall thank you for that. I hope that we, even after all of this, can work together", Vienna spoke politely.

"Our paths will part now. Even though I am of Royal blood, I shall bow before you, Vienna. May our paths will cross again, my son", Přemysl bid farewell.

Vienna bowed one last time before him, before leaving the room, also bidding farewell.

Přemysl's last words echoed inside of Vienna's thoughts.

"...my son", Přemysl had said.

"...son"

"...that's it...", Vienna thought.

"It must be"

"It has to be"

In this moment, Vienna's thoughts became clear.

"I am not a girl", he said.

--

(1159 words)

A few disclaimers for this chapter: I don't Idolize King Ottokar Přemysl the second, but this historical figure is very important for the early medieval history of Vienna, that's why he is so important to Vienna. Also, Přemysl calls Vienna "his son", not in a paternal way, but in a way an older person would call younger people. In this chapter I used they/she pronouns for Vienna and i was very relieved as I finally used his right pronouns in the last sentence. Also, another OC of mine, Carinthia, made an appearance in this chapter. Apparently a carinthian knight killed Přemysl in the battle of Marchfeld. Carinthia will definitely appear in future chapters again.