A crown of flames

Chapter 2

I look up at the vast garden,bigger than my whole neighbourhood, with hedges trimmed into delicate shapes and artistic designs , surrounded by a huge body of crystal clear water and fountains left ,right and centre.

Behind the gardens stands Yorthenden itself.

A white building so grand it puts Buckingham palace to shame.

The castle has towers of differing sizes and each crevice and door and window are accentuated with silver detailing .

My eyes take long to reach the top of this never ending castle , to find the roof is a royal blue.

It was truly something straight from a fantasy novel.

I'm in such awe at the building that looks straight out of a book that i don't notice a man walk out of it and i gasp as the door next to me is pulled open.

"Welcome to Yorthendon Palace, Miss Elide, residence of Medranian royal Family" says the man who opened my door.

He was tall and looked to be in his late 50s and he looked at me with such respect and submission i felt like royalty. He extends a hand.

I nod and smile back as i take his gloved hand and leave the car.

I note he's simply wearing a black and
white suit unlike the men that picked me up in their white and blue uniform earlier.

"Princess Alana and her majesty Queen Fari will be with you shortly,i have been asked to escort you to the quarters in which you will be residing for the duration of your stay."He said.

I nod again as i'm lost for words as the door to the place is opened by two guards and the silver foyer is revealed.

Huge is an understatement.

The foyer is bigger than my three bedroom house.

It's White walls are decorated with silver to match the exterior and there are two grand staircases at either end of the hall.

"What's your name Sir"i ask as i try to blink away my awe.

"My name?"the man asks

"Yes, the noun people use to refer to you?" i reply to his stupid question.

Seriously,does he not know what a name is.

"I am Jeremiah , but the residents of the royal house refer to me as the head of staff, it helps keep things professional"

"Well Jeremiah, Head of staff is a mouthful so if you are okay with it i'll be referring to you with your name,okay? i say with a smile.

"Whatever you are comfortable with"He says giving me a sideways glance as he leads me up the stairs.

As we reach the top of the staircase he walks towards one of the corridors on the first floor, i marvel at the artwork and vases i'm sure cost more than double my student loan each until we reach the last door.

"These are your quarters Miss Melian"He says as he hands me a set of silver keys.

What is it with Medranians and their silver?

"Thank you Jeremiah"

He ignored my thanks and said "I will be here to escort you to the dining room in exactly 30 minutes, i hope this is enough time for you to get settled in"

"i'm sure it will be more than enough" i said gesturing to the one very small bag i brought with me.

"If you will excuse me miss Melian "He said and i nodded for him to leave.

I unlock my room door to find it's not a room after all, but three.

White walls adorned with silver and a set of wooden navy blue furniture that i traced with my finger as i walked towards my window.

I sat and lay on the huge four poster bed and sighed as my body sank into the silky light blue sheets.

I could get used to this.

I started up at the wall and smiled as i felt everything i'd worked for come into place.

I felt as if my whole life had been wasted and controlled my parents thus far but this is something i have done for my self.

Only i can take credit for this success.

All those years in sadness and feeling hollow are coming to an end.

I check my hair in the mirror.

i got it done in the in airport salon before my flight so it's a silky smooth blow out with some light curls as opposed to it's natural frizzy state.

I gave it a quick brush and then sprayed some perfume as i unpacked my bag and put down my journal on top of the silver fireplace facing my bed.

I opened the door in the middle of my room which led to what seemed like a lounge area.

A grand sofa was sprawled in the room with a beautiful glass living room table in front of it.

The room was beautifully decorated and i spied a bookshelf at the right side and a grand desk on the left.

In the centre was a dazzling diamond chandelier that matches the one in my bedroom.

I went on to my bathroom which was twice
the size of my whole bedroom in London and wondered at the amount of lavish soaps and products left for me to use.

I did notice however,that while the bathroom was the most beautiful one i had ever seen, It had no specialty facilities,the bath was beautifully decorated but it had a simple silver tap at the end.

The same with the sink and the cabinets were also completely normal.

I'd expected some crazy jacuzzi settings and steam rooms (the royal family could defiantly afford them after all) and i realised the rest of my rooms were like this too.

Beautifully decorated but technologically simple.

Like the palace hadn't been touched in a century.

The medranians are certainly people of their word.

They retained tradition alright.

I freshened up my breath using the toothpaste and brushes supplied for me and sprayed some perfume and reapplied my deodorant.

Then i put on some blush to give my face some more colour after the 10 hour flight and my mascara and eyebrow makeup managed to survive so i decided to finally open my bedroom door.

I smiled at Jeremiah who was waiting to escort me to meet the princess who changed my life.