Her Royal Highness

Chapter 5

True to Adam's word, Mal's door handle was fixed bright and early the next morning. After dinner and before bed, Sophia had helped Mal personalize her phone more, going as far as to add a few game apps and a drawing system. She also showed Mal how to access the music that the castle had purchased, which Mal didn't like much. It made for good background music, but she could only listen to 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'A Whole New World' so many times. She missed her old Isle music, a few tracks of which she and her friends had recorded. Ben would probably have a heart attack if he heard her singing about how 'Rotten to the Core' she was though.

She asked Sophia for a map of the Castle. Sophia texted her a picture and explained that they further she got from the main halls, the more finicky the magic of the castle became. Walls were sometimes not where they were supposed to be and doors only unlocked half of themselves, the like. However, Mal was confident she could navigate the palace by herself. To prove it to herself, she figured out how to find the time the sun would rise with her phone and set an alarm for thirty minutes before.

When she got up, the world was still dark. The hallways were musty. Kind Sophia had asked one of the palace servants to leave the castle and get some clothes for her. She now wore an elbow-length purple tee with several thin, decorative belts crossing her middle and black high-waisted jeans that were easy to move around in. There were about four other casual outfits in her closet now. Sophia was trying to find some dressier gowns for Mal to wear to accompany Ben places though Mal doubted she'd wear them.

Mal used the phone to skillfully navigate the passages of the castle. She found her way past the library, and then to the main hall. An older man with a mop looked startled to see her. She gave him a sarcastic salute when he said good morning, and they ignored each other as she walked outside.

The sky was beginning to grey with streaks of pink edging their way onto the horizon. Dew stuck to the grass. She couldn't see very far, but she did notice the edge of the castle exterior wall was very jagged and the paint was peeling off the edges of the bricks. Perfect for climbing. She made her way through a flower bed and put a foot on the brick. She'd be climbing on her toes all the way up, but hopefully, it would be worth it. Also, hopefully, Belle and Adam wouldn't kick her out for parkouring their home.

She began to climb. About halfway up, she realized that the world had gotten exponentially brighter, and quickened her pace. Near the top, her foot slipped off for a nanosecond, but she used her arms to haul her body to the rest of the top.

Once on the roof, it was easy to walk around and find a nice place to watch the sun rise over the hills. She ended up picking a place where the front circle drive was still visible, and where she was centered above the porch as the sun came up.

The sky turned from dull blue-grey to a stunning purple, and then to fuschia. Mal sat with her knees tucked up under her arms. She shivered some, but she'd been exposed to far harsher circumstances on the Isle.

The sky slipped out of a short yellow phase and began to turn its normal brilliant blue. Mal began to consider climbing down, but then she saw movement at the end of the driveway. As it got closer, she squinted to make out its shape. It was a carriage. One that was obviously for royalty. All thoughts of leaving left her mind as she watched the carriage come closer to the Castle.

Who would be calling on the Royals this early in the morning? Was it the Fairy Godmother?

The carriage stopped in the middle of the circular drive and a footman hopped out to let a figure out of the car. The palace roof was so high up that Mal couldn't make out the figure at all.

The person walked up the steps and Mal observed they were wearing heels from their shadow. A girl, probably. Maybe a guy. She'd known guys on the Isle to enjoy wearing heels.