Chapter Two Thousand Eight Hundred and Twenty-Six
2nd June 1980
Richthofen Estate, Silesia
When Niko had received his Diplom in Military History, he understood that it was hardly the end of his education. He would be going back to school in September, the Field Command School in Lichterfelde as his Officer’s Commission would be active. That was following everything that was planned for the summer, Moscow next month and then he had his marriage to Monique to contend with. As was tradition, Piers Sjostedt, Monique’s grandfather had arranged to post the banns in Flensburg and Breslau with it seeming like every newspaper picking up the story as it had appeared in the weekly bulletin in the Lutheran Cathedrals of those respective cities.
Both Niko and Monique had complicated relationships with religion after what had happened to their respective mothers. The reaction had been different though. Niko had considered religion as a box to check if necessary, the whole bit about there being no Atheists in foxholes had been a bit too on the nose. Monique’s response had been to study Theology at University and in the process, completely rejecting the Catholic beliefs of the odd corner of France she had been born in. The result was that Monique had understood the implications while Niko had been a bit slower on the uptake. That had changed in a hurry when Monique had snuck out from the main house out to the guesthouse where Niko had lived since he had started attending the University of Breslau. What followed was the sort of thing that he was unlikely to forget with everyone, including his parents, very likely turning a blind eye because it was only a matter of weeks before they finished with the formal part. It was afterwards that they had a chance to talk. Of course, Monique had a question despite there being little about Niko that was out of the ordinary.
“Did the Heer do this to you?” Monique asked looking at the tattoo on Niko’s arm, stretching the skin of his arm out so she could see it better. He had the AB+ in letters that had once been black but had oxidized to blue, tattooed on the inside of his arm about twenty centimeters above his elbow.
“No, I was still going to Wahlstatt at the time, it is optional but strongly suggested” Niko replied, “It is considered a life saving measure because that is where the Medics know to look, but that wasn’t my consideration at the time though.”
“What was your consideration?” Monique asked.
“My entire class had been taken to Münsingen, mostly as free labor to clean up the place” Niko replied, “We were told that for administrative purposes we were considered Soldaten while we were there and one of the Feldwebels asked if anyone wanted to make it official like, prove we were men as it were and most of us stepped up.”
“Just how old were you?” Monique asked.
“Far too young” Niko said, “No one was asking how old I was though and I am quite certain that it was all incredibly illegal. I spent the next several months dreading that my mother might see it.”
“And that is your blood type?”
“Yes” Niko replied, “Me, along with a good portion of the Mischners. That makes us among the few universal recipients.”
Monique looked at him, a bit quizzically before asking. “You would have inherited that from your mother? Did Ingrid?”
Niko considered the unclothed state they were in and realized that there were no secrets between them anymore. It wasn’t just being physically naked here; it was being open where he might not have been inclined to be in the past.
“I don’t know” Niko replied, “My mother nearly died when I was born and the Doctors said that she should not attempt to have another, she still wanted another though and Ingrid needed a family. She is my little sister though; she always has been. Technically, she is my second cousin.”
Monique was clearly surprised by that answer. “She doesn’t know, does she?” She asked.
“My mother said that she will tell her when she is ready” Niko replied, “She is afraid that it will turn Ingrid’s world upside down.”
“Ingrid has no idea how lucky she is” Monique said, “Everyone in Fossoy knew my history and weren’t afraid to rub my face in it.”
Niko had heard Monique talk about that place before. He couldn’t imagine what that must have been like, having almost everyone in your community despise you because of a war had had ended long before you were even born. Niko remembered that Opa had always said that he ought to consider himself fortunate and to never forget that his success in life had more or less been guaranteed from the day he had been born. Most people, including his mother or Monique had nowhere near that sort of guarantee by any stretch of the imagination. How did you succeed when every hand was against you? Niko had no idea.
“Well, this isn’t Fossoy” Niko said.
Apparently, that was not the right response.
Monique rolled away from Niko, wrapping the sheet from his bed around herself in the process. “No, this place is exactly the same as Fossoy, you’re just on the other end of it” She replied.
Niko had thought that he had understood. It seemed that he had been mistaken on that score and didn’t know correct thing to do in this situation. Even as he had that thought, he realized that Fossoy was a key part of the lens that Monique looked at the world through. It was always with her.