Chapter Text
12:17 am. January 5th, 2022: Drottningholm Palace, Stockholm, The Kingdom of Sweden.
The Queen marched through the palace at a brisk pace. On the outside, she appeared to be her usual calm, collected self. If one were to look closer, they would notice the frequent twitch in her eye, and the slight shake to her hands. She, Her Majesty Queen Kristina II of Sweden, was shaken, and she didn't like it. The only times in her life where she had been this shaken was the deaths of her father, King Erik XVI, and her dearly missed oldest son, the Crown Prince Erik. The cause of her current state was her surviving son, the Crown Prince Wilhelm... or rather the article that had been released at midnight. She had received a call from the Prime Minister mere minutes after the article was posted, demanding explanations. She promised to call him back later in the day with answers, and the only person who could give her those answers was Wilhelm. When she arrived at the door to her son's rooms, she found the door shut and guarded by his personal protective officer, Malin.
"Malin." The Queen greeted.
"Your Majesty." Malin greeted back curtly with a curtsy.
"Is the Crown Prince asleep?" The Queen asked, "I need to speak with him urgently."
"I don't think he is, ma'am." Malin responded, a hint of coldness seeping into her voice as she spoke, "I think he is waiting for you."
The Queen observed her for a moment.
"Did you know what Wilhelm was doing?" The Queen asked swiftly.
"I did, Your Majesty."
"And why didn't you stop him?" The Queen asked shortly.
"Your Majesty, my job is to protect the Crown Prince from any and all physical harm that can be done to him," Malin responded equally shortly, "His Royal Highness giving an interview does not pose him physical harm. I have performed my duties to the letter, both for Wilhelm and for Erik. I am a bodyguard, not a jailer."
The Queen was taken aback. She was not used to being talked to in such a way by anybody. Except for perhaps President Putin, but he was rude to anybody who wasn't Russian. Malin opened the door, and the Queen stepped inside. The room was dark. The only light in the room was the light of the moon filtering in through the window. Wilhelm sat in a high-backed plush armchair in the corner by the window. He was wearing the same soft purple hooded sweatshirt he had been wearing at dinner, and he was wearing headphones. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to be asleep.
As soon as the Queen took a step forward, his eyes shot open and flashed around the room, foggy with sleep. As soon as his eyes landed on her, however, that look changed. His eyes narrowed, and his lip curled into a slight sneer that only lasted a moment. He straightened up in the chair and crossed his legs. It took her aback for a second how much Wilhelm resembled pictures of her father as a boy. Especially the glare he was giving her. It was a glare that was so lacking in warmth, it could probably freeze the Baltic Sea with a single glance. He tilted his head at her, as though he was curious at her late-night intrusion.
"...What have you done, Wilhelm?" She whispered, once he had removed his headphones, pointing to her phone and the article on the screen. In bold black letters the headline jumps out at them.
“Crown Prince Wilhelm Speaks Out: Crown Prince admits to sex tape, reveals Royal cover up. Asks for privacy for his partner.”
Willhelm held her gaze defiantly.
“I did what I should’ve done in the first place.” He responded, his voice cold enough to freeze diesel, “I fixed my mistake. I told the truth. If I am to be their King someday, I will NOT be made a liar.”
The amount of contempt in his voice was enough to poison a rhinoceros.
“You threw your family under the bus.” The Queen hissed, “You’ve potentially ruined your cousin’s life!”
“Turnabout is fair play.” Wilhelm said icily, “He ruined mine first. That traitor is no family of mine, and I’ve already told him so. He lost the right to call himself my family when he started making child pornography.”
“You’re being completely ridiculous!”
“By legal definition, the sex tape was child pornography!” Wilhelm snapped, “It was a video of two underaged boys having sexual relations! That’s exactly what it fucking is! But of course you don’t care about that. You don’t care about anything but the image of your precious Crown. Well, now the country knows it too.”
He spat the word Crown with so much venom, they were both heartily surprised it didn’t burn a hole in the wall.
“You’ve aired the family’s dirty laundry for the whole nation to see!” The Queen hissed, “What I did was what was best for the Crown! To protect the privileged life you seem so intent on ruining…”
“Being Royalty has only ever been a punishment to me and you know it.” Wilhelm responded, “If it were up to me I would smash that metal headpiece of yours to smithereens for all the pain and suffering it’s caused me. We’re powerless figureheads, a tourist attraction for idiots who want to gawk at the world’s fanciest zoo exhibit!”
“Watch your tongue, boy.” The Queen snarled.
“Or what?” Wilhelm scoffed, “You’ll disown me? Go ahead. You’d be doing me the biggest favor you’ve ever paid a person. You’ll hurt me? I’ll go to the press and Parliament and they’ll destroy you for child abuse! Although I doubt it’s possible for you to do more harm than you already have!”
“I would never disown you Wilhelm.” She balked, “You are my son!”
“Yet still, you betray me for August.” He sniped.
“The matter was settled Wilhelm!”
“It was never settled and you fucking know it.” Wilhelm said, “You brought this on yourself the moment you took August’s side over mine and Simon’s. You forced me to abandon Simon to the wolves because you can’t stand the thought of a queer prince or King. Well newsflash, mother. I love Simon more than I will ever love your GODDAMNED CROWN! I’m not doing it without him!”
“Oh, don’t speak to me of that infernal boy!” The Queen snapped, “Your childish, shortsighted, ridiculous infatuation with that boy has clouded your judgment! Simon, indeed! You have not only disgraced me, you have the disgraced the entire family! Erik would be disgusted with you!”
She shouldn’t have said that. She very quickly realized that she really shouldn’t have said that. After weeks of avoiding confrontation and controlling his temper, Wilhelm’s restraint had snapped. He launched himself to his feet, and within seconds he was in his mothers face, snarling at her.
“You will KEEP THEIR NAMES OUT OF YOUR TRAITORS MOUTH!”
She realized her misstep too late. She tried to take a step back, but Wilhelm advanced. Within seconds, Crown Prince Wilhelm of Sweden is only separated from his mother the Queen by Malin, who came into the room because she heard the raised voices. Within seconds the Prince is screaming at the top of his lungs and smashing things. The long brewing temper tantrum slash mental breakdown had finally arrived.
“YOU DARE SPEAK OF HIM?” He screamed through furious tears, “DO YOU HONESTLY THINK, IN YOUR BRAINWASHED MIND, THAT ERIK WOULD BE ON YOUR SIDE! THAT HE WOULD SUPPORT YOU PROTECTING A CHILD PORNOGRAPHER WHO FILMED HIS BABY BROTHER AND POSTED IT FOR THE WORLD TO SEE? IF HE WERE HERE RIGHT NOW, HE WOULD BE KING! BECAUSE HE WOULD HAVE RIPPED YOUR HEAD OFF YOUR SHOULDERS! HE WOULD HAVE HAD AUGUST EXECUTED FOR WHAT HE DID TO ME! ERIK SWORE TO ME I COULD TRUST AUGUST, AND NOW AUGUST HAS MADE ERIKS WORD MEANINGLESS! HE WOULD HAVE TAKEN MY SIDE, AND PROTECTED US! WHATS WRONG WITH YOU, THAT YOU WON’T DO THE SAME? ITS BECAUSE YOU DON’T CARE ABOUT ME AT ALL! ALL YOU CARE ABOUT IS YOUR MOTHERFUCKING CROWN, AND I FUCKING HATE IT! I! FUCKING! HATE! YOU!”
The Prince’s knees gave out, and it was only Malin helping him back to his chair that prevented him from hitting the floor. The Queen stands rooted to the spot, thunderstruck and silent. She was caught in a mini flashback of her own, for Wilhelm so resembled her father during his tirade that it had triggered long buried memories. Horrible memories that she would like to remain forgotten.
“You’re not Swedish.” Wilhelm spat through his tears, “You’re Hanoverian! You share their swine like tendency to trample their young.”
The Queen snapped out of it.
”Wilhelm…”
He cut her off.
”You WILL cease your protection of August.” Wilhelm stated, his voice dead cold, “You WILL have him arrested and put on trial for his crimes. I WILL date Simon, and the Crown WILL put out a statement declaring the courtship recognized and official.”
”Wilhelm, please…”
”No, ENOUGH!” Wilhelm snapped, before collecting himself again, “I will no longer accept any compromises or alternatives on this matter. I love him. That’s all there is to it. I’m queer, and even if what Simon and I have doesn’t last, Sweden will NOT have a Queen Consort while I sit on the throne. It WILL have a King Consort. The only alternative is my immediate abdication, which would leave the throne destroyed, with no heir at all.”
The Queen stared at her son. Her angry, hurt, grief-stricken, anxious, willful, stubborn son. For the first time she could remember, she saw a King behind those eyes.
She sighed.
“Fine.” She finally said, “We’ll do it your way.”
Wilhelm deflated.
”Good.” He murmured, “Now please leave me alone.”
The Queen opened her mouth to say something else. But she shut it and made her way to the door. When she was at the door she turned back to Wilhelm.
”I do love you, Wilhelm.” She said tiredly, “I’m sorry you can’t see that.”
Finally, she exited the room. Wilhelm could hear his dad outside the door hammering his mother with questions.
”You should call Simon.” Malin told him, “He needs to be made aware of what is about to happen.”
”It’s 12:30 in the morning Malin…” Wille reminded her, “He’s probably…”
*RINGRING*
”…Asleep.”