Sophie's Silence
The best part of moving the nursery to the Hofburg Palace was that I could see my kids without the Archduchess Sophie's permission.
"Mommy."
"Sophie!"
The tutor was shooting me a disapproving look, but what could she do about it? This was the Imperial Palace, and I was the Empress. I took Sophie's hand and headed into the room where her siblings were staying. There were three wet nurses, a head nanny, two junior nannies, and the head nanny who'd originally been in charge of Sophie. Everyone except the head nanny had been replaced.
"Sophie, these are your little siblings. Rudolf and Gisela."
Unlike Sophie, the twins—who just happened to share her name—actually gave me a sense of stability. They made me feel like I truly belonged here. Like tragedy wouldn't come knocking.
"Ooo."
Sophie stared up at me and tugged at my dress.
"Up you go—boring, huh?"
She was pretty heavy. What could I do to keep Sophie entertained? I didn't want to go back to the room with that tutor.
"Wanna play checkers with Mommy?"
Sophie buried her face in my chest and shook her head. But didn't most three-year-olds talk by now? I had no experience raising kids, so who knew...
Why?
Why are flowers flowers?
Why can't I eat this?
No matter how I thought about it, something felt off.
Ramen! Wanna eat ramen!
...Yeah, definitely off. My nephew around this age had been a question-mark murderer. He knew how to express what he wanted, at least. No wonder they called it the terrible twos—or threes, in this case.
"Sophie."
I slipped my hands under her armpits and lifted her high.
"Sophie Friederike Dorothea Maria Josepha Elisabeth."
Sophie just blinked at me, no response. I glanced around just in case. The nannies had noticed something was wrong too, and Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein and the other court ladies looked concerned.
"Head nanny."
I carefully set Sophie down.
"When did this start?"
You were the one raising her.
The head nanny bowed so low her forehead nearly touched the floor.
"Until a year ago, she had just started speaking, so she was moved to the nursery room with the tutor."
"She could speak?"
"Yes, yes! That's right, Your Majesty!"
"Head nanny."
I gently pulled Sophie back into my arms and gave her a warning look.
"If word gets out beyond these palace walls, it'll be on your head."
She'd said it herself—the child could talk.
As I carried Sophie through the gardens back to the Empress's apartments, the nobles stared like they'd seen a ghost.
"Head lady-in-waiting. From now on, no one enters the Empress's apartments without my permission."
Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein immediately assembled the ladies-in-waiting of the Empress's apartments.
"..."
After a long silence, she finally spoke, her words halting.
"It can't be."
Short sentence. But the ladies understood. The biggest reason the Habsburgs had faced crisis during the Revolution of 1848 was that the Emperor hadn't acted like one.
"Didn't the head nanny say it herself? She had started speaking."
Ferdinand I could talk too, but right now, the ladies needed this much reassurance. When the mother-in-law had bragged about Sophie, she'd always said how the girl called her "Mommy" with joy.
"As Her Majesty commanded, don't speak of this to anyone. Not even family."
Only the nursery nannies and the Empress's ladies knew this secret. The nobles were just gossiping about the Empress breaking protocol—no one was talking about the little Archduchess yet.
"If rumors about the little Archduchess spread, arrows will turn to the newborn Archduchess Gisela and Crown Prince Rudolf. You all know that."
Rumors of a curse on the imperial bloodline would be dangerous. She reined in the ladies first, then headed back to the Imperial Palace. Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein confirmed a new face in the nursery.
"What brings the tutor to the nursery?"
"Head lady-in-waiting."
"Court Chamberlain."
The tutor deliberately called her "head lady-in-waiting" to belittle her, so Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein reminded her of her position.
"I'm not the tutor's lady-in-waiting. You should call me Chamberlain of the Empress's Apartments."
"Countess Esterházy-Lichtenstein, do you think the Archduchess will let this slide?"
"Baroness Bendel, I'm terribly sorry, but I serve Her Imperial Majesty the Empress."
Baroness Bendel reminded her of her duties.
"I am the Archduchess's tutor. My duty is to stay by Her Highness's side, wherever she is, and complete her education."
She explained that oversight of the nursery still fell to her, appointed by Archduchess Sophie.
Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein acknowledged her logic.
"Her Majesty did permit it. But that was for personnel, not this kind of behavior."
"Have you ever felt human warmth in this palace? Countess Esterházy-Lichtenstein, you've grown cold."
"The tutor is right. There are no people in this palace. Only positions. And Her Majesty acted not as a mother, but as the Empress."
"Is carrying a child across the gardens proper protocol for Her Majesty? Chamberlain, our positions exist for a reason. Even if Her Majesty fell, could I help her?"
"Where was the protocol broken? Her Majesty was merely performing her official duty of overseeing the imperial heirs. And now we've reached this point because of the problem."
"You said 'problem' just now?"
"Was I wrong?"
Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein turned to the head nanny.
"Head nanny. Bring the observation log."
The head nanny glanced at the tutor.
"The Chamberlain has no authority."
"I'll show it to Her Majesty. You've reported to the Archduchess until now, but Her Majesty is taking a deep interest in the little Archduchess."
The observation log was meticulously detailed. Bowel movements, meal amounts, sleep times, cough counts—health status. Words learned today, etiquette progress, attitude toward religion. Obedience or rebellion toward whom. Even who received guests, when, and how.
"Shall I request it directly from the Chief of Staff? Or contact my cousin, the Lord Chamberlain?"
This was Grüne's domain in the Imperial Palace, and since it was the Archduchess's people, they might block it. But to Duke Karl von und zu Liechtenstein, Countess Esterházy-Lichtenstein—as a Liechtenstein princess—held more sway.
I tested Sophie's reactions. I wanted to call Joseph Schoda, but that might spread rumors of a problem with her.
"Tickle, tickle—!"
"Ehehehe!"
Okay, no issues there. I sat her facing me. Would she understand words?
"Sophie, hold Mommy's hand."
That worked too. I stretched out my left hand and pointed at the window.
"Sophie, look over there."
As soon as I spoke, she turned her head. Good, no developmental issues. I sighed in relief.
But in that instant, I caught her tiny body flinching. No way—in a romance-fantasy empire, there was corporal punishment? Anxiety rising, I carefully lifted her collar. No marks, thank goodness.
Selective mutism... But she clearly called me "Mama," so Mommy. I wasn't a doctor, let alone a psychiatrist. I wasn't reckless enough to experiment on a child with half-baked knowledge.
"Sophie..."
What happened during my pregnancy? I covered my face with both hands to hold back a sigh.
The door opened. Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein entered holding a thick book.
"I need to see what you're holding."
She handed me the book labeled Observation Log. I skimmed the front until the part where the responsible party changed to the tutor, then stopped.
No major changes yet...
"Around here."
"After Her Majesty's visits became infrequent, the little Archduchess has focused more on her education, showing no unnecessary questions or distractibility."
"Maintains calm without emotional disturbance, obeying instructions immediately."
"Previous distractibility gone; finally possesses the dignity and virtue of silence befitting a Habsburg Archduchess."
I slammed the log shut and set it on the side table.
"Sophie, how about staying with Mommy for a while?"
Sophie cautiously approached and nestled into my arms.
"Your Majesty."
"Speak."
Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein said carefully,
"Try speaking to her in French."
In French?
"Sophie, are you hungry?"
"Oui, j'ai faim."
Wait... what?
She could talk? I turned to Sophie Esterházy-Lichtenstein in confusion.
"...She speaks?"
She'd followed everything I'd said perfectly until now. Was she playing along? No, a three-year-old couldn't be that perceptive. Now that the tension eased, I recalled she'd used simple words before. Relief washed over me. I thought I'd lose her.
Guards' voices grew louder outside.
"It's still chilly out."
The ladies quickly closed the windows, blocking the noise.
No morning schedule now, right? Perfect timing for lunch.
"Head lady-in-waiting. Tell the cooks to prepare the little Archduchess's meal as well."
I kissed Sophie's forehead as she nestled in my arms.
"Don't worry, Sophie."
Yeah, you're a Wittelsbach through and through.