Journal of a Russian Imperial Guard Soldier 8
Alexander Palace, 1913
Celebrations were held in honour of the Romanov tercentenary. I got to wear a formal service dress uniform for the occasion. The grand duchesses wore beautiful white dresses. Strangely, none of the grand dukes or princes offered to be their escort. While an embarrassed lady-in-waiting pushed a few navy officers to accompany the grand duchesses, I took the opportunity to ask Tatiana, and she joyously accepted.
Tatiana introduced me to a few of her friends and relatives. Some were surprised to see me as her escort. My low rank was unimpressive to them, but Tatiana was not discouraged. During dinner session, she was more interested in conversing with me than with any of the nobles. She prefers my company rather than her social equals.
We proceeded to the dance floor after dinner. Olga however remained at the table, apparently unenthusiastic about the party. I learned from Tatiana that her sister had fallen for an officer from the Standart and was heartbroken when he got married. I wanted to cheer her up, so I later approached her and asked her to dance with me. Unfortunately, Olga fell over me when I made a misstep and tripped. The imperial family and the guests all burst into laughter at the sight of both of us on the ground. Olga and I were mortified, but she bravely put up a smile and continued dancing. We really enjoyed ourselves.
As the celebration went on, I accompanied Olga, Tatiana and Marie to the grand staircase where they bade me goodnight before retiring to their rooms. Anastasia was behind me, visibly sad because I never danced with her. I offered her my hand. But instead of returning to the ballroom, she happily took me outside, where we danced in the garden. We relaxed on a bench afterwards, during which Anastasia snuggled on my shoulder. We were still holding hands. I carried her back to the palace when she dozed off. I will never forget this night.
blakekathryn
kianamaiart
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