Palace Gardens
It was late when the carriage entered the palace gates. The carriage ride had given the king and queen lots of time to get to talk with Arilla. They learned more about what it was like to live in the forest outside the palace walls, and Arilla learned a lot about what it was like living in the castle. Her room would be the princess’s tower on the west wing side of the castle. She was also encouraged to take charge of the gardens inside the perimeter of the stone walls and to plant whatever she would like. Arilla already knew what she would like to grow to make tasty treats: ruby red strawberries, plump blueberries, and other sweet fruits. She would also like to grow unique flowers to decorate her new café and make more bouquets. The gardens were the perfect place to build her new café.
King Ivan and Queen Ivette decided to retire early, but Arilla was too curious to try to sleep. She still could hardly believe what had taken place that day. One minute a common forest creature, the next a princess! It was almost too much to imagine, but it was real. There she was, inside the palace gates, in a light green swaying gown with silver bracelets and anklets replacing the green vine ones she had been wearing earlier. The wind blew coolly around as she pulled the embroidered shawl closer about her.
After saying good-night to the king and queen, she headed off in the direction of the gardens. It wasn’t hard to find them, following the sweet scent of the spring blossoms. The narrow dirt pathways between the stone walls of the castle lead her to them. The sun was setting behind the back castle wall, casting a shadow. The gardens were an elaborate maze of flowers and ponds, stone pathways, bridges, and even a few clusters of very old trees for shade.
Tall shrubs lined many of the pathways, and without her fairy wings, it was hard for Arilla to see over them. But not everyone had that problem…
Arilla was distracted looking at the dark purple flowers growing among the red roses and didn’t notice the shadow moving about. She was humming like she often does when in the garden or baking up something fun. Her emerald slippers were making a soft clicking sound as she moved from one section of flowers to another across the stone paths. She was in a hurry to see all she could before the setting sun disappeared behind the wall. Unaware she was being watched from behind the tall shrubs, she wandered further from the main castle and closer to its back wall.
As she turned the corner around one of the tall shrubs, something caught her attention immediately! It was a three tier gazebo in the center of the largest pond in the garden. She had always wanted a gazebo next to the brook outside her café but had never made the plans. Here was one, the largest she had ever seen. It was covered in blossoms. She crossed the little swinging bridge to reach it and skipped up the spiral stairway inside the first gazebo to reach the second and third level. From there she could look out over the garden and even over the castle wall to the thick trees that lay beyond. The garden and mazes were all clear from where she stood at the top. She sat down on the little bench inside to rest and to enjoy the view. But what caught her attention next startled her…
She hadn’t been alone in the garden. There was someone there staring up at her. She hadn’t even thought that anyone would be there so late. He stepped out of the shadows and called up to her, “Iviona?”
Arilla breathed in sharply, unsure of what to reply. She just stared back, wondering who he was. She wasn’t sure if she should act like she recognized him or demand he tell her who he was. She thought to herself, “What would Iviona do?”
