Ingrid felt like a stone statue, incapable of showing any emotion or moving, as she watched four people come towards the ship and up the ramp onto the deck.<br/><br/>Two older men, one a soldier by the look of him and the way he hung back slightly from the others. The other man was handsome and distinguished, with a kindly smile and friendly eyes. She guessed that he must be the Czar himself, Pavel Romanov.<br/><br/>The woman standing next to him was as beautiful as he was handsome, with an air of regal tranquility that gave all her movements grace and ease. Her large brown eyes looked kind and welcoming, and for a moment, Ingrid felt a slight upswelling of hope that at least the Czar and Carina might show her kindness and favor.<br/><br/>Her eyes finally came to rest on the last man in the party. She knew who he was even before he was introduced. Alexei Gregor Romanov, her future husband. She swallowed hard, stunned by his devastating handsomeness. Tall, broad-shouldered and strong, he carried himself with the ease of a lord and the strength of a soldier. She met his eyes for a moment, then swiftly looked down, not wanting him to see the confusion in her own, solemn gaze. He had looked...well...both pleased and unhappy at the same time. Perhaps he felt the same as she about this marriage.<br/><br/>She dropped a deep curtsy to the Czar and Czarina and Alexei, staying down until the Czar bade her rise, as was correct protocol.<br/><br/>"Greetings from my father, His Majesty Gustav, King of Sweden," she said in a soft, sweet, cultured voice. "He begs me to convey to you his pleasure at the strengthening of the alliance between our countries."<br/><br/>She drew from the inside pocket of her cloak an envelope bearing the Swedish king's seal and offered it up to Pavel, staying in her deep curtsy and keep her eyes down - not an easy maneuver for anyone, but skillfully done by a princess trained to do it practically from birth.