A Royal Adventure [Ongoing]

Six

'Tell me about your family then,' Penelope said, lying on her bed and painting her nails an outrageous shade of red that she assured me she could get away with for the weekend. She had offered to paint mine too, but I had declined – for now anyway. It was my first weekend at school and I had survived the first week.

I was attempting to read a book that was part of my French syllabus, but I was finding it hard to concentrate. With Pen's words, I flipped it shut, keeping my finger in the page, wondering how best to answer the question.

Before I had arrived I had assumed that my tactic would be to say nothing, but now that seemed silly. I had to say something – even if it wasn't the whole truth. But it would be a truth that I was comfortable with.

'I've got one older brother, Henrik. He's about ten years older than me though.'

'Wow. My sisters and I are only years apart, so we all do things at roughly the same time. What does he do?'

'He works for the country.'

'In government?'

'Sort of.'

Her eyes widened. 'He's not a spy is he?'

I laughed. 'No. definitely not.' He couldn't be. Everyone in the country knew his name.

'What about your parents?' she asked curiously, concentrating on her nails again.

'They're – they're both dead.'

Penelope gasped and stared up at me, nearly knocking her polish bottle over. 'Oh I'm so sorry! I didn't mean – I mean, I shouldn't have asked.'

'It's okay,' I said hastily, 'it was a while ago.' There was no easy way to bring the subject up anyway, and how was she meant to know?

'Is that why you're there then?' she asked.

And I seized, perhaps foolishly, perhaps desperately on that straw that she offered me.

'Yes,' I said, 'I suppose it is.'

The truth was that my parents would never have allowed this crazy venture to take place – not without lots of pomp and ceremony – and at least the chance to make good links with the country. I was grateful that my brother had allowed me to do this at all. I was glad that he was so distracted. And grateful to Ana for always being on my side. I had learnt that he would do anything she said.

'Tell me about your family?' I asked instead, keen to learn about something that was relatively normal.

'Two big sisters, both of them are now at uni – studying different things. Cassie is in first year, Sam third – doing law.'

'Are you planning on going to university then?'

'Of course.' She frowned. 'Are you?'

'Things work differently in my country,' I told her, trying not to think about how my life would change and that no – I wouldn't be able to go to university. Or at least not right away. That would be a whole other debate with my brother. But that could come in the summer. I was just going to enjoy this English adventure. 'What about your parents?' I added hastily.

'Dad's a lawyer, very dull really – Mum does charity stuff, looks after the dogs, that sort of thing.' She screwed the lid back on the polish and sat up, blowing on her wet nails. 'We live the other side of London – about an hour and a half away?'

'Why did you come here?'

'My mum was here when she was a girl.' Pen smiled. 'My sisters started, and I just followed because I follow them in everything. But it's good – I'm glad that I did come. What are you going to do for exceats and half terms?'

'I'm not sure yet – I think I was going to stay with a family friend in London.' Somewhere that had been checked.

'You'll have to come stay with us.'

I smiled, unable to say what I wanted. That would be lovely, but do you mind if the sniffer dogs go round first? Just to make sure you're not going to blow me up and cause an international incident. And I have to have a security guard follow me around, but that should be okay, right?

No, I couldn't say that. So I just kept quiet, and hoped that maybe things would fall into place.

'I suppose you'll miss being able to go home. I guess you'll fly back for Christmas?'

'Yes. I used to travel when I was little, I'm used to being away.'

'Did your dad travel for work?'

I smiled again, enjoying for the first time in my life being so anonymous that I could be asked questions like that. 'Yes. He did.'

'My dad travels a bit, but he never took us with him.'

'We would all go.'

'Sounds like fun.'

'I suppose it was.' I smiled. I glanced down at my bitten, messy nails. 'Will you paint my nails after all?'

She beamed and launched forward to pull out the largest bag of nail varnish I had ever seen. 'What colour do you fancy?' she asked. And that was the beginning of our mad but rather wonderful friendship.

I long for it now, as we raced down French motorways into the unknown.