There really is no logical reason why I couldn't have just said no to Princess Starshine's proposal, but something felt wrong about rejecting an all-expenses-paid spa trip. After all, I could use some de-stressing. And perhaps Skylar will be so distracted by the unfamiliar situation that she won't try to talk to me.
The chill of autumn in Glitterswirl Heights does not discourage the sun from shining bright, and so Skylar has donned a snapback hat and a pair of sunglasses that look borrowed straight from the princess's closet. I'm not sure they 100% go with the dragon pleather jacket in terms of seasonal appropriateness but at least she's dressed like a somewhat normal person for once.
Skylar adjusts the hat's brim and turns to Princess Starshine as we approach the spa. "You really think they'll let me in?"
"Doubt it," I say.
The princess flips her hair. "Oh, please. I'm Glitterswirl Spa's favorite customer. There's no way they'd turn you away."
"We'll see," Skylar responds, not nearly as sure.
Glitterswirl Spa is an impressive, three-story facility with the front of the building shaped like a delicate white lotus welcoming us into its petals. The princess and I walk through with ease but Skylar hangs back.
"I'll talk to them," the princess tells her. A unicorn woman smiles at us from behind the pure white front desk, a sparkling mini waterfall behind her adding a quiet splash to the gentle soundtrack. If it weren't for Skylar waiting to be let in, I'd feel totally at peace.
"Your Highness," the woman says, bowing her head of swirling lavender hair. "Welcome back. I'll have you checked in immediately."
"Actually," the princess says. "I'm here to check in a couple friends."
Did she just call me her friend?
"Oh!" the woman gasps, apparently just now noticing me. "Of course. And what's your name?"
"Gossamer Glade," I say.
The princess indicates behind her, where Skylar stands just behind the doorway. "My other friend is waiting to be invited in," she explains.
The woman laughs lightly, charmed by what she likely perceives as shyness and not a physical inability to enter. "Well, of course she's invited!"
"Sky," the princess beckons. "They let you in."
Skylar steps in, still tentative. She removes her glasses and shakes away her hat hair as she joins us at the desk. Her lips are pressed together abnormally tight, no doubt to hide the fangs behind them. Without those showing and without the trademark red eyes she would have if it weren't for her albinism, the visual differences between her and a sleep-deprived elf go unnoticed to an untrained eye. Still, I step to the side in an effort to make it clear I don't consider us close.
The woman blinks, trying to reconcile Skylar's disheveled hair and aging clothes with the immaculate princess to the right of her and the fashionably dressed elf girl to her left. "A-and you are?"
Skylar looks to the princess, who says "Her name is Skylar Acdalur."
"Sky... Sky- how do you spell that?"
"S-K-Y..." the princess begins knowingly, but then her smile leaves. "Um... L?" Skylar nods. "And then... it's an... E, right?"
Skylar shakes her head. "It's spelled with an A," she says before bringing her hand to her mouth, eyes wide.
It's too late. The woman already saw the fangs. Flustered, she says, "I-I'm very sorry, Your Highness, but I'm afraid it's against company policy to serve your friend here."
YOU ARE READING
Starshine, Sky, and the Power of Rock
FantasiaPrincess Starshine is ecstatic to finally attend the Royal Academy of Rock, a school in the sky that specializes in teaching the magically dangerous art of rock music. She'll be placed in a band with four other girls, and together they'll have adven...
