The World Above

Chapter 9 : The Palace

Felix's POV

What the hell is going on here?! Just hours ago, this girl accused me of making moves on her, and now she's making plans for Seollal with my mother. Girls! They're so unpredictable!

And if Haven is spending Seollal with us, what about Haishi? What about the media? Haven's voice pulls me from my thoughts. "Felix, I think I should go now..." Mother looks crestfallen at her suggestion; she really enjoyed spending time with Haven. "Is it urgent?" Haven laughs and shows her phone screen to us: 20 missed calls and about 75 messages. Yikes!

I glance at my watch. It's only 9 pm. "Sure, Lixin will drop you off." I nod at Lixin, who leaves to get the car keys. Mother and I accompany Haven to the car.

"Thank you so much, Ahjumma! I enjoyed my evening a lot!" Mother smiles at her, the same warm smile she shows Haishi, a clear sign of approval. "Not at all, darling," she says, kissing Haven's cheeks.

"Thanks for coming on such short notice. Rest well," I add. Haven shakes her head, her raven black locks swishing about. "No worries!" She gets into the car after one final bow, and I close the door behind her. I watch the car until it disappears from sight.

I stifle a yawn. I catch my mother's eye. "What?"

"Nothing." Then, after a moment, she says, "I believe you'd like me to uphold my promise to you." I straighten up. Of course! How could I forget the whole reason behind this hastily arranged dinner?

I nod eagerly. Mom laughs at my enthusiasm. "Do you dislike her that much?"

"Who? Haishi? No, that's not what I meant! It's just that we're so opposite," I continue before my mother can interrupt me. "And I know you're going to say that opposites attract, but not in this case. We're like polar opposites."

Mother chuckles and rolls her eyes. She stares at the gate and then suddenly becomes serious. "That girl. She'll bring many changes to your life. Both good and bad. She's beautiful, no doubt, but she hides a part of herself from the world that I suspect no one knows of. If you pursue her, you have no idea of the amount of changes you'll experience."

Before I can even comprehend what she means, Mother looks at me, smiles, and pats my back. It's the first time I see how much she's aged since Dad died.

Haven's POV

I get out of the car, thank Mr. Lixin, and make my way into the house. My mom, Mira, and Matt are all waiting for me. They look up as I close the door.

"Well... how was the date?" Mother asks, breaking the silence. "It wasn't a date, just a favor for a friend," I sigh. It's been a long day, and I'm too tired to explain everything.

"Well then, how was the food?" Matt asks. "And his house! I want to know everything!" Mira interrupts. "Gosh! You guys are acting as if I've never been on a dinner date before!"

"Aha! I knew it was a date... and this is the first time you've accepted an invite from someone other than your friends," Matt says annoyingly.

He runs away before I can hit him, sticking his tongue out. I roll my eyes. "Well, if you must know, his house was humongous and the food was spectacular," I say vaguely.

"How are you so lucky? You're surrounded 24/7 by handsome and rich men all vying for your favor. How do you do it?" Mira sighs. "Isn't it your bedtime? Go to sleep!" I say, irritated. "I'm going too, so no more questions!"

I walk up the stairs leading to my bedroom. My room is isolated from the others. It was originally the attic, but when Mira was born and Mike left home, I convinced my parents to renovate it for me. It took a lot of persuading, but they finally relented.

I enter my room and immediately flop down onto the bed. Not even bothering to take off my clothes or shoes, I soon fall asleep.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I'm awoken around midnight by a strange tapping on my window. Groggily, I get up to inspect. A man swoops in and covers my mouth before I can scream. He moves in front to face me, keeping his hand firmly on my mouth. "Haven! It's me!"

I open my eyes and focus on the figure in front of me. Certain I won't shout, he removes his hand. "Hercule!" I cry out as soon as he does so. Hercule nods. "The God of Animals here to escort you to the Magix Kingdom."

Ah, that's right. Tonight was the night we were supposed to visit Magix for the first time, officially. Hercule reaches his hand out to me. Heaving a big sigh, I take it. "I hope you're not scared of heights." "Wait, what do you... AHHHHH!" I scream as he picks me up and jumps from the second-floor window.

I grip Hercule's neck tightly, bracing for an impact that never comes. I gather the courage to open my eyes and see that we're flying. No, not flying. We're riding a magical beast.

"This is Kuzunoha, my spirit animal," Hercule says, gesturing to the flying fox. I grip his neck even tighter. "Please keep your hands on the steer... I mean, the animal." He chuckles at my nervousness.

Felix's POV

Mmmh! This is delicious! I have to hire the baker who made this cake. As I devour more funfetti cake, someone taps me from behind, almost making me choke. "Who's there?" I swallow quickly and look up to see Chofi staring at me.

"Whatever you have to say must be really urgent for you to break into my house at such a time!" I exclaim. "Well, it would do you good to remember that I have to take you to the Magix Kingdom for your basic training tonight."

I mentally facepalm for forgetting such an important thing. "Yeah... let me get changed and then we can go!" Chofi grabs my hand. "There's no need."

Chofi's eyes glow and wings sprout from her back. Before I realize what's happening, we fly out of the house. Trying not to sound scared, I splutter, "You... could have warned me!" Chofi smiles, one of the few reactions I've seen her display.

We've been traveling above the clouds for some time, and even though the scenery is spellbinding, I start to feel sleepy. "It would be better if you stayed awake. We'll be reaching the Heavenly Gate soon," Chofi advises.

She's right. It would have been a great loss to miss the Gate. It's so beautiful that I can hardly take my eyes off it.

Chofi lands on the clouds, and I follow suit. The magical wings that kept me afloat disappear. The guards bow at the sight of Chofi.

One of them brings a chariot to her. She hops on and gestures for me to do the same. As soon as I'm safely on board, the chariot starts to move.

"Hold tight. I borrowed Aether's chariot, so we'll be moving faster than the speed of light!" Chofi warns, and I tighten my hold on the bars.

We reach the palace in seconds. Chofi gets out while I try my best not to puke. The hallway of the palace is beautifully decorated, lined with crystal statues and vibrant colors.

But when we enter the main hall, my breath is taken away. From the ceiling hang all types of crystals leading up to a magnificent chandelier in the middle.

The floor is made of clear glass, and rows of vines bearing the most idyllic flowers I've ever seen line the sides.

Ten flags hang from the walls, five on each side, with a waterfall in between each. Below these flags are thrones. And on these thrones sit the Gods and Goddesses.

At the far end of the hall sits Angelica, the Queen of Gods and Goddesses and the ruler of Magix.

Chofi bows, and I follow her movements. "At last, little prince, you are here. Now we only have to wait for Hercule and the young princess," Angelica smiles. "No need, Your Highness. We have already arrived!"

Everyone turns toward the voice to see Hercule helping Haven get off a large nine-tailed fox.