Running Around Royal (Prince Harry #4)

Chapter Forty-Two

The airplane touched down in Rabat, Morocco, and Meredith was happy to be wearing a dress. It was an odd sensation, and she hated the thought of it.  A breeze came off the Atlantic Sea. The longer she stood there, the more she wanted to swim. Harry knew exactly what she wanted, and this night was theirs. When they came off the airplane, they walked together. Photographers waited on the red carpet that had been brought out.

At the bottom of the stairs waited the prime minister of Morocco with the king and queen closely behind. Meredith felt more comfortable now, even with the ever constant butterflies in her stomach, because Morocco was a constitutional monarchy, just liked the United Kingdom. It was all for show, and Meredith preferred it that way, especially when Harry and her stood fifth in line. There wasn't too much pressure there, even though it felt like it was going to crush Meredith.

Harry greeted the prime minister first and then Meredith followed suit. Harry bowed to King Mohammed VI, but Mohammed was having none of that. Pulling Harry into a hug, the king greeted him with a kiss on either cheek. King Mohammed VI had a reputation of sorts when it came to fast cars and women in his younger days; ever since taking the throne, he tried to keep his shoulders straightforward. Soon after taking the throne, even, he pushed for poverty and corruption control, job creation, human rights improved and women empowered. There were even rumors that he married his wife, HRH Princess Lalla Salma, before his father's approval and had a public wedding later.

Their two children, Prince Moulay Hassan and Princess Lalla Khadija, waited behind. Meredith had heard of the crown prince because he was young and attractive to many; Harry had been given the same by many populations. He was an eligible prince after all.

Meredith was greeted by Princess Lalla Salma by a kiss on either cheek before being led down the carpet with the Moroccan royal family. While the prime minister had other things to attend to, the royal family had only the British royals to help with today.

In Rabat, the royals were seen to Hassan Tower and Mausoleum of Mohammed V. They stood opposite of each other. A mosque hovered nearby, and both of these places they visited were religious. Hassan Tower was a tower that was started in in the twelfth century, but it was never finished. Columns of white stone stood at attention under the towering red unfinished tower. Walking among the columns, Meredith felt short to say the least. On the other side was the Mausoleum of Mohammed V. Going through the columns, the white stone structure arose with defined details and patterns. Inside was the lavish resting place of of Mohammed V in 1971. The king's father was also buried here.

After those historic places, the royals were taken to Dâr-al-Makhzen, which was the royal residence of the king, queen and their children. Influenced by French architecture, extensive gardens and grounds surrounded the palace. Both France and Spain had claimed areas in Morocco before. A small mosque rested on the grounds as well. Inside the palace, there were suits for the royal family, a full library and a school. At one point, the guards also lived in the palace, which showed how large the palace was.

At lunch, the British royal couple was served the best that the Moroccan royal palace had to offer. There wasn't a state dinner for tonight, which allowed for some free time in the evening, but that meant the show off happened now. It was a six course meal, and during those long meals, it wasn't much about eating but poking the food around. With so much food, it was impossible to eat it.

It was weird not to speak politics, and Harry relaxed a bit more into this setting. The king had no problem showing off his expertise when speaking multiple languages, and he joked with Harry about their younger and crazier days. Meredith knew all about those days of young Harry, and she didn't wish to relive them. One of the reasons Harry and her worked out was the fact that he was so mature-- or, well, he was most of the time. Meredith was able to recount many times where his maturity faltered. Princess Lalla Salma spoke to Meredith about the weather in the United Kingdom and how unseasonably warm in had been for February; Meredith had to admit that she didn't know because she hadn't been paying much attention to the life back in London. She didn't remember the last time she had spoken to another member of her royal side of the family.