Now it's Marie's turn

Marie is my best friend, and the sweetest of my sisters. Mama and Papa call us "the little pair". Of course, Olga and Tatiana are "the big pair". Marie and I are never apart, but she is much nicer and calmer than I am. She doesn't torment our tutors or play nasty tricks, and she doesn't complain about wearing hand-me-downs.

My sister Marie is good at drawing. Perhaps that's because she has such big eyes! We tell each other stories when we go to bed at night. Mine are full of dragons and knights, and ancient legends. Hers are full of young officers passing secret messages to imprisoned princesses. I think she's going to fall in love soon.

I feel a little bad about Marie though. She's so wonderful and kind to me that she'll go along with anything I suggest, even when it gets her in trouble. I made her roller skate with me (and all the officers on the yacht too) on the deck of the Standart, Papa's yacht.

No picture of Marie can really capture who she was, but this is one of my favorites: