Noblesse oblige

Part 7

Chapter 7

Another day dawned and things were somewhat hectic in the Southern Isles. "WHERE IS HE?!" Princess Margarette screeched while slamming the basin to the ground. The porcelain bowl shattered causing the maid that was helping her with her washing to flinch. The maid shrank back as the normally calm Princess appeared quite irate.

"Calm down Maragette," The Regent said as he stood by her now open door. "Your shouting will achieve nothing."

"We can say the same for your actions Lars," Margarette growled at her oldest brother who was Regent until their father and mother returned. "To think that I trusted your plan at all!"

"Leave us," Lars growled and the maid ducked out with her head down. Now only the Princess and the Crown Prince remained.

"You need to be patient sister," Lars stated. "If all goes well we will be able to take Berk, Dunbroch and Arendelle in one move. Don't you want to be Queen of a vast empire?"

"Nothing has been going well! Prince Hiccup should have been crawling back to me by now. And of course I want to be Queen!" Margarette exclaimed in a very unlady-like fashion. "But it was your stupid plan to break off the engagement with Berk. I just needed to wait for his old man to croak. I already had him wound around my finger."

"Why wait when we can just take what we want? Who cares if Prince Hiccup didn't come here on bended knee." Lars asked with a raised brow. "If my plan works then Berk, Arendelle, and DunBroch will be clawing at each other's throats. Their resources will become depleted once a war breaks out. It's then when their rulers are most vulnerable. Once they are weakened we strike."

"Is that why you convinced our brother Hans to aim for the Arendelle throne?" Margarette raised a brow and crossed her arms. "Look how well that turned out."

"Hans was an idiot," Lars said dismissively. "He would have never gotten the throne. I just wanted him out of the running for King. Though if he had succeeded then there was nothing a little poison wouldn't fix."

"So ruthless," Margarette chuckled. "That's why you and I get along."

"Hans is gullible. He took my bait this time as well and he even dragged our 10th brother into it." Lars smiled wickedly. "Soon there will be one less Royal with a claim to the throne."

"So me breaking my engagement was also part of this grand scheme of yours. Father will be mad." Margarette uttered.

"Exactly," Lars smiled as his eyes got colder. "Angry Kings make mistakes...."

"I better be compensated richly for this. Facing father's wrath is not something I look forward too." Margarette sated while pursing her lips.

Meanwhile, back on Berk, Astrid was contemplating how to approach the scullery maid. Mala had given her some direction but had ultimately left it up to her. It still left a bitter taste in Astrid's mouth that she would have to pretend to be someone's friend. She either was or wasn't. If she wasn't friends with someone they would know it right away. This reminded her too much of the fake friendships among the Nobles. Especially the story of the fall of the Thornston family. They were a prominent family governing an Earldom but have recently begun to decline. Earl Thornston was an ex-army General who governed his family with an iron fist. The ladies were expected to marry into prominent families and the men were supposed to take over the Earldom and its businesses. The problem started when Lady Thornston had befriended a daughter of a Viscount in the neighbouring territory. Everything was fine for a few months. Lovely tea and garden parties. One day Lady Thornston confided to her friend that she would rather become a doctor then marry the brute her father had picked out for her.