CHAPTER VII
H.R.H. THE PRINCESS IMPETUOSITY
The Princess Margaret spoke low and confidentially to the secretary ofembassy as they paced along. Johann Pyrmont felt correspondinglyawkward. For one thing, the pressure of the Princess's hand upon his armdistracted him. He longed to have her on his other side.
"You are noble?" she said, with a look down at him.
"Of course!" said the secretary quickly. The opposite had never occurredto him. He had not considered the pedigree of travelling merchants orHamburg architects.
The Princess thought it was not at all of course, but continued--
"I understand--you would learn diplomacy under a man so wise as the HighCouncillor von Dessauer. I have heard of such sacrifices. My brother,who is very learned, went to Italy, and they say (though he only laughswhen I ask him) worked with his hands in one of the places where theyprint the new sort of books instead of writing them. Is it notwonderful?"
"And he is so brave," said the secretary, whose interest suddenlyincreased; "he won the tournament yesterday, did he not? I saw you givehim the crown of bay. I had not thought so brave a man could be learnedalso."
"Oh, my brother has all the perfections, yet thinks more of everyshaveling monk and unfledged chorister than of himself. I will introduceyou to him now. I am a pet of his. You will love him, too--when youknow him, that is!"
"Devoutly do I hope so!" said the secretary under his breath.
But the Princess heard him.
"Of course you will," she said gaily; "I love him, therefore so willyou!"
"An agreeable princess--I shall get on well with her!" thought JohannPyrmont. Then the attention of his companion flagged and she was silentand distrait for a little, as they paced through courts and colonnadeswhich to the secretary seemed interminable. The Princess silentlyindicated the way by a pressure upon his arm which was almost more thanfriendly.
"We walk well together," she said presently, rousing herself from herreverie.
"Yes," answered the secretary, who was thinking that surely it was along way to the summer parlour, where he was to meet the Prince.
"I fear," said the Princess Margaret quaintly, "that you are often inthe habit of walking with ladies! Your step agrees so well with mine!"
"I never walk with any others," the secretary answered without thought.
"What?" cried the Princess, quickly taking away her hand, "and you sworeto me even now that you never helped a lady from her horse in yourlife!"
It was an _impasse_, and the secretary, recalled to himself, blusheddeeply.
"I see so few ladies," he stammered, in a tremor lest he should havebetrayed himself. "I live in the country--only my maid----"
"Heaven's own sunshine!" cried the Princess. "Have the pretty young menof Plassenburg maids and tirewomen? Small wonder that so few of themever visit us! No blame that you stay in that happy country!"
The secretary recovered his presence of mind rapidly.
"I mean," he explained, "the old woman Bette, my nurse, who, though nowI am grown up, comes every night to see that I have all I want and tofold my clothes. I have no other women about me."
"You are sure that Bette, who comes for your clothes and to see that youhave all you want, is old?" persisted the Princess, keeping her eyessharply upon her companion.
"She is so old that I never remember her to have been any younger,"replied the secretary, with an air of engaging candour.
"I believe you," cried the outspoken Princess; "no one can lie with sucheyes. Strange that I should have liked you from the first. Stranger thatin an hour I should tell you so. Your arm!"
The secretary immediately put his hand within the arm of the PrincessMargaret, who turned upon him instantly in great astonishment.
"Is that also a Plassenburg custom?" she said sharply. "Was it old Bettewho taught you thus to take a lady's arm? It is otherwise thought of inour ignorant Courtland!"
The young man blushed and looked down.
"I am sorry," he said; "it is a common fashion with us. I crave yourpardon if in aught I have offended."
The Princess Margaret looked quizzically at her companion.
"I' faith," she said, "I have ever had a curiosity about foreigncustoms. This one I find not amiss. Do it again!"
And with her own princessly hand she took Johann's slender brown fingersand placed them upon her arm.
"These are fitter for the pen than for the sword!" she said, a sayingwhich pleased the owner of them but little.
The Courtlander Otto, who had been on guard at the gate, had meantimebeen relieved, and now followed the pair through the corridors to thesummer palace upon an errand which he had speciously invented.
At this point he stood astonished.
"I would that Prince Wasp were here. We should see his sting. He isindeed a marvel, this fellow of Plassenburg. Glad am I that he does notknow little Lenchen up in the Kaiser Platz. No one of us would have amaid to his name, if this gamester abode in Courtland long and made therunning in this style!"
The Princess and her squire now went out into the open air. For she hadled him by devious ways almost round the entire square of the palacebuildings. They passed into a thick avenue of acacias and yews, throughthe arcades of which they walked silently.
For the Princess was content, and the secretary afraid of making anymore mistakes. So he let the foreign custom go at what it might beworth, knowing that if he tried to better it, ten to one a worse thingmight befall.
"I have changed my mind," said the Princess, suddenly stopping andturning upon her companion; "I shall not introduce you to my brother. Ifyou come from the Ambassador, you must have matters of importance tospeak of. I will rest me here in an arbour and come in later. Then, ifyou are good, you shall perhaps be permitted to reconduct me to mylodging, and as we go, teach me any other pleasant foreign customs!"
The secretary bowed, but kept his eyes on the ground.
"You do not say that you are glad," cried the Princess, comingimpulsively a step nearer. "I tell you there is not one youth----but nomatter. I see that it is your innocence, and I am not sure that I do notlike you the better for it."
Behind an evergreen, Otto the Courtlander nearly discovered himself atthis declaration.
"His innocence--magnificent Karl the Great! His Plassenburger'sinnocence--God wot! He will not die of it, but he may be the death ofme. Oh, for the opinion of Prince Wasp of Muscovy upon such innocence."
"Come," said the Princess, holding out her hands, "bid me goodbye as youdo in your country. There is the Prince my brother's horse at the door.You must hasten, or he will be gone ere you do your message."
At this the heart of the youth gave a great leap.
"The Prince!" he cried, "he will be gone!" And would have bolted offwithout a word.
"Never mind the Prince--think of me," commanded the Princess, stampingher foot. "Give me your hand. I am not accustomed to ask twice. Bid megoodbye."
With his eyes on the white charger by the door the secretary hastilytook the Princess by both hands. Then, with his mind still upon thedeparting Prince, he drew her impulsively towards him, kissed herswiftly upon both cheeks, and finished by imprinting his lips heartilyupon her mouth!
Then, still with swift impulse and an ardent glance upward at the palacefront, he ran in the direction of the steps of the summer palace.
The Princess Margaret stood rooted to the ground. A flush of shame,anger, or some other violent emotion rose to her brow and stayed there.
Then she called to mind the straightforward unclouded eyes, the clearinnocence of the youth's brow, and the smile came back to her lips.
"After all, it is doubtless only his foreign custom," she mused. Then,after a pause, "I like foreign customs," she added, "they areinteresting to learn!"
Behind his tree the Courtlander stood gasping with astonishment, as wellhe might.
"God never made such a fellow," he said to himself. "Well might he sayhe never kissed any but ladies.
Such abilities were lost upon mere men.An hour's acquaintance--nay, less--and he hath kissed the PrincessMargaret upon the mouth. And she, instead of shrieking and calling theguard to have the insulter thrust into the darkest dungeon, falls tomusing and smiling. A devil of a secretary this! Of a certainty I musthave little Lenchen out of town!"