Always & Forever by: Elsbeth Numbers of the Beast “ As I said Maggie, sometimes it’s all worth it.”

“Thank you, Your Eminence, we are proud of her as well.” Maggie smiled at another dignitary who came to congratulate her on her sister’s rise to the rolls of the Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur. Several other scientists and a handful of Astronauts were to receive the honor during the night’s ceremony.

“Your Eminence, a pleasure to see you again, may I borrow my fiancé for a moment.” Lord Alexis Bellamont came up behind Maggie and pulled her away from the Church dignitary. “She’s missing.”

Maggie smiled and reached up to touch the face of her intended. “Don’t worry, my love, she will turn up eventually; you know how much she hates these events.”

Nadine had always insisted Maggie attend the events as well. At first, she thought it was, so Nadine didn’t have to go alone, but even when Josephine in attendance she dragged her sister along. Maggie now knew that her sister wanted to share her good fortune. The two girls walked among the most powerful people of the Empire and during one of those ceremonies, Maggie met Alexis.

“I think the Ambassador of the Northern American Republic confused her with someone’s child. I heard that he was a little rude about it.”

Maggie made a face. “It’s not her fault that she still looks like she’s sixteen.”

The two sisters no longer looked like twins. Maggie now really looked like the older sister. It was also beginning to put a strain on her sister’s relationship with Josephine.

“You would think with all these advances in modern medicine they would discover what is wrong with her.”

“I thought that all women would enjoy looking young.”

“Would you want to look like a teenager all of your life?”

“No, of course not, come let’s see if we can find where she is hiding.”

Nadine stood quietly, admiring a painting in the room known as the Salon de Mars. French troops were depicted marching across an American landscape, doing battle with grey-coated troops. She knew the scene depicted one of the battles fought in the nineteenth century with the Southern American Federation of States.

“I think my uncle was in that battle.”

Nadine turned to watch a young girl in a dark blue dress approach. “So you’re hiding out too.”

Nadine laughed. “Something like that, I’m Nadine.”

“I’m Cleo, want me to give you the tour? Don’t worry, I’ll have you back to the dinner before your parents start to miss you.”

Passing through the Hall of Mirrors, the two girls looked out the windows to admire the host of dignitaries that had come to the event. Cleo was impressed that her older companion knew so much about the latest Parisian fashions. It also surprised her that the girl knew the Chá¢teau de Versailles almost as well as herself.

“Let’s go get my brother, he is supposed to be my escort. If you want, you can sit by us during dinner. I mean, if you want to, you don’t have to.”

It was difficult to believe that Nadine was actually twenty-one, if it was true then there was no chance she would want to be around a sixteen-year-old.

Nadine slipped her arm through Cleo’s arm. “No, sounds like fun. I love my sister, but she’ll want to spend time with her boyfriend.”

“You don’t have an escort.” The pair continued towards the family section of the Palace. Nadine had known for some time that her new friend was Princess Cleo, daughter of the Emperor.

“Well, my girlfriend was supposed to be here, but she had some family things come up.” Cleo reached over and gave Nadine a hug. She could tell that there was more to the story.

“Where have you been, mother’s furious.” Prince Lucien Charles Joseph Bonaparte, the eighteen-year-old brother of Cleo, stood in the center of the hallway. “We almost had to send out the Imperial Guard to look for you.”

Cleo giggled. “I wonder if he means you or me.”

Nadine smiled. “Good point.”

“Nadine, this is my brother Charlie.”

Cleo brother’s eyes opened wide.’ “You’re Comtesse Nadine Augereau.”

“In the flesh.”

“Wait here.” He started to move, then came back. “Please don’t go anyplace I’ll be right back.”

Cleo turned to take a good look at her new friend, then she began to giggle. “You know, I think he has a poster of you on his bedroom wall.”

“What?” Nadine shook her head. “Cleo, why would your brother want a poster of me on his wall...plus...plus I never posed for anything like that.”

Cleo tried to suppress a smile. “Charlie is crazy about the space program. I think it’s the one with all of the Astronauts and some of the scientists involved in the moon landing.”

“Cleo.”

The Princess began to giggle she then nodded as her brother turned the corner with a rolled-up poster in his hand. “See told you.” The three rolled the large poster on the floor. “I like the pink hard hat.”

“Thanks, it makes it easier to find me on the site.” Nadine reached over, took the pen out of the Princes hand, and signed the poster. “Let me keep this, Your Highness. Most of the people are here tonight, so let’s get all of their signatures.”

“Really, would that be ok? I mean, that would be great. “The young Bonaparte seemed very pleased about the idea. “ Also, call me Charlie.”

Nadine was amused when the Prince offered his arm. His sister took the other one and the three-headed towards the ballroom.

“Nadine, that was very nice of you.”

The young scientist smiled. “I’m crazy about the space program, too, Cleo.”

Maggie shook her head; she couldn’t imagine that on such an important occasion, her sister would go home. From what she heard about the incident with the Ambassador, it didn’t sound all that bad.

“My love, I didn’t know your sister was friendly with the Royal Family.” Lord Alexis Bellamont was currently watching the front of the ballroom.

“Well, she was raised to the Peerage, but I don’t think she knows them all that well.”

Alexis gave a small laugh. “You might want to ask her about it.”

He motioned to Maggie to look at the royal table at the front of the ballroom. There was her sister surrounded by the Royal Family. She seemed to be having a conversation with the Emperor himself.

“Mon Dieu, Alexis, she’s having dinner with the Emperor.”

“I see Nadine. You explain that well enough for an old man like me to understand.”

Nadine smiled at the forty-year-old Emperor. “You’re hardly old, Your Majesty, plus you have a keen intellect. I think you would have made a wonderful scientist.”

Emperor Napoleon laughed. “Your friends are improving, Cleo.” Leaning over, he whispered, “Normally they just roll their eyes at me.”

The Emperor of France, of course, knew exactly who had joined the family for dinner. She was raised to the Peerage, a singular honor in France. More than anyone else in this room, she was the reason why France put men and women on the moon last month.

“Papa.” Cleo crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. She then grinned. “I love your dress, Nadine. Mamma, maybe the three of us could go shopping together.”

“I would like that very much, Cleo.” Empress, Anna smiled. “Perhaps when I am feeling a little better.”

Nadine took a good look at the Empress. There had been rumors going around the country that she was very sick. The Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur ceremony was the first public appearance in some time. Without any movement on Nadine’s part, time stopped.

Calculations and equations appeared all around her, which the young scientist pushed aside to look at the Empress. Nadine wasn’t a doctor, so she couldn’t take one look at her and give a diagnosis. Still she could tell that something was wrong. Nadine threw up a long calculation over the Empress, which looked a lot like DNA.

“Merde, she has Leukemia.” The young woman placed her hands over her face, then took a deep breath. Like Alice, she knew she couldn’t interfere with everything. A balance had to be kept.

It was so hard for her sometimes, it didn’t seem fair.

Nadine pushed the chair out of the way then started to write in the air, complicated calculations based on space-time probability. If the young Empress death strengthened the Dimension in which they lived then she would make sure to support Cleo through the rough time ahead. However if there was a chance that the Empress's death would cause problems, then it was her job to make sure that she stayed healthy.

Sometime later, Maggie sat back on the chair and smiled tears running down her face. “Maggie, sometimes it’s all worth it.”

The disease was a threat no longer, just inert material that the body would be able to get rid of with no problems.

Moving the chair back, Nadine wiped her face and smiled. Maybe she will get to dance with an Emperor tonight.

Alice leaned against the remains of a large stone structure that had been for a time part of the Washington Monument. The world was cold and getting colder. Large ice sheets had already begun to crawl south, grinding into paste the last remains of the human civilizations that used to dwell on the planet.

She had been hunting the beast for some time, and it had been frustrating. Humans and other sentient life were quite capable of destroying themselves without the need for an outside entity. Only the damage done to the fabric of that dimension showed the beast’s presence, but by then it had already moved on.

“I don’t know if I can do this, I am not the Caretaker,” Alice whispered to the heavens.

Only a Caretaker could feel the shadows passing, but that powerful creature had long disappeared into the edges of the multiverse. In an age past Alice was much like Nadine, a bright student who could look into the inner workings of the Universe. The Caretaker came to her and offered a chance to walk among the stars. At that time there were even others much like her roaming the dimensions keeping them healthy. Now she was alone.

The ancient being smiled. “No, not so alone.”

Alice knew that Nadine could easily step into her shoes. She would even be more empathetic with the lost spirits in her care, something that had been stripped from Alice long ago.

Rising from the ground she brushed off non-existent dirt from her clothes and looked to the stars. Nadine’s help might be needed in the future, but for now she would leave the young girl alone.

Nadine sat on the veranda overlooking the streets of Paris. Of all of the places in the world, she loved watching the sunrise over the Le Marais district in Paris.

At night, she would sit and decompress, drinking wine and laugh with Josephine. She looked through the doors into the bedroom at the empty bed. Her intended was still away at her parents’ house.

Josephine looked twenty-three, but Nadine still looked sixteen. When physically, they appeared to be only a few years different, no one cared, but she knew now when they walked down the streets. What happens when Josephine was thirty, forty would she be able to still be with someone who looked like her child. It was all her fault of course. Alice had warned her about practicing her newfound skills. The young scientist laughed. She had done more than just practice. Closing her eyes, she could hear the music of the Universe. A knock at the door interrupted the symphony.

Nadine closed her robe as she stood up, why was the Princess here? She, of course, knew who was at the door long before it was opened.

“Lia, I got the door.” The older woman nodded as she continued to make breakfast for the Comtesse.

“Cleo, good morning, you’re just in time for breakfast.”

The young Princess reached over and hugged Nadine then stepped back. “Good, I’m starving.”

She entered the apartment and realized that it was definitely furnished by someone much older. Cleo still found it difficult to comprehend that Nadine was actually five years older than she was.

“I love your apartment.”

“Thanks.” Nadine went into the kitchen to tell Lia that there was another joining for breakfast. She knew that the Princess’ security wouldn’t be eating, but would pass them some croissants and coffee anyway.

‘Come to the veranda, it’s where I normally have breakfast.”

“I didn’t wake you up or anything?” Cleo looked around; it appeared that Nadine was still alone.

“No, though I do try and sleep a little later on Sundays. Unfortunately, I didn’t sleep too well last night.” Nadine knew she was sleeping less and less; there seemed to be no need anymore.

Cleo nodded and looked over the Le Marais district. A few of the street artists were already moving around the square below.

“So, Cleo, you’re not running away from home are you?”

“What.” The young Princess sat back startled then giggled. “No, of course not.”

“Good.” Nadine waited as Lia placed a plate of fresh juice and coffee, croissants, and muffins along with homemade jellies on the table.

“Lia if you could see if the nice men outside are taken care of? I am sure they use some coffee.”

“Si Contessa.” Lia curtsied and left the two young women to themselves.

Nadine handed the young Princess a glass of Orange juice. “Don’t take this wrong Cleo, I’m delighted to see you, but why are you here?”

Princess Bonaparte looked over the streets of Paris and took a sip of Orange juice. “My mother is feeling better.”

“That’s very good news, I read in the paper that she had been sick.” Nadine carefully reached over and took a blueberry muffin out of the basket then broke off a small piece. “She seemed a little tired at the ceremony last weekend.”

“Last weekend after the party, Mama was able to sleep all night for the first time in a while. On Tuesday she went shopping with me.” Nadine watched as a single tear rolled down the Princess's cheek. The Princes Bonaparte smiled then wiped it away. “I think he was joking, but Charlie said it was Nadine’s blessing.”

Nadine smiled. “Yes, but that only works for rockets. “

Cleo laughed. “I heard they started to rub your head as well before they enter the capsule.”

“That one’s going to stop, I’m not Buddha.” She grumbled. “I’m also going to beat my friend Cynthia for that one. She was joking with me at the time. In fact, the whole Nadine blessing thing is her fault as well”

“Papa said that someone thought there was a fire in a lab, and two of the Astronauts picked you up and ran outside with you. They didn’t want their good luck charm to be harmed.”

Nadine groaned, placing her hand over her face. “They conveniently forget at times I am also their boss.”

“I wanted to give you this.” Cleo reached into her purse and pulled out a powder blue envelope. “It’s an invitation to my birthday. You’ll come, won’t you?”

Nadine took the envelope and smiled. “Of course.”

“Good.” She looked down at her watch. “I have to go. I promised Mama that I would go to church with her today. We have a lot to be thankful for.”

Nadine escorted the Princess to the door where her security was already waiting. The Princes reached over and hugged Nadine. She whispered. “I don’t know if you did bless my mother, Nadine, but if you did, thank you.”

Nadine smiled. “Have a good Sunday, your Highness. Please give my warmest regards to your mother.”

Cleo nodded and started to walk away, then turned ran up to Nadine, rubbed her head, then fled through the door, giggling.

Nadine shut the door. “ As I said, Maggie, sometimes it’s all worth it.”