The Royal Agency

♕~Chapter Four~♕

When Hazel had walked into Room 1034, her breath was taken away. It wasn't so much a room as an entire mini apartment. The place was on the top floor. The first room she walked into had a velvet sofa, a coffee table, floor-to-ceiling windows that provided an excellent view of the palace grounds and part of the city, bookshelves, and a flatscreen television. A desk sat in the corner by the shelves. A fully furnished kitchen expanded out from the far corner. On the other wall, stairs led up to a loft, in which was a queen-sized bed, a huge bathroom, and a walk-in closet.

Julia had left half an hour ago, leaving Hazel to unpack. She said that she'd see Hazel at dinner that evening.

Hazel had laid her suitcase on her bed and made Chione a little nest out of an extra blanket she'd found in the closet and paper towels that she'd shredded. Chione looked quite glad to be out of the pouch sling. Hazel had even found a pack of baby carrots in the fridge and gave Chione a few.

She sat down on the couch. On the coffee table sat a magazine holder full of brochures and magazines of Besamor, along with the keys to the room. The first brochure she opened was a map of the palace. The second one was a map of Besamor. Another magazine was full of tourist attractions and historical sites.

Nothing about superpowers or this 'agency'.

A knock sounded on her door. She got up and opened it.

Then nearly fell over in shock.

Standing in the hallway was the same man she'd seen in the palace gardens. He had the same dark skin, shining eyes, and curly hair. He was even still wearing the same hoodie and track pants. In his hands he held a small stack of folded fabric.

The man bowed formally. "Good to see you made it, Princess Hazel. I am Prince Anthony of Merici. You may call me Tony."

Hazel stared at him. "How do you know me? And how did you-"

"I know you have questions," Tony said calmly. "They will be explained at dinner orientation. Here-" he held out the folded cloth to her. "This is your trainee uniform. Wear it to dinner tonight."

Hazel took it. "Thanks?"

"I'll see you soon, Princess."

Then he disappeared again.

Hazel blinked a few times. Chione crunched on one of her carrots and shuffled around in her makeshift bed, snapping her back to reality.

The uniform consisted of a plain grey long-sleeved polo, straight black pants, and a dark blue padded vest. Earlier, Hazel had opened the shoe closet, in which were a pair of black combat boots, black riding boots, black heels, black slides, and black sneakers. She was starting to sense a theme in the colors here. In her closet were a few dresses and civilian outfits. Hazel had no idea how all the things in her room were exactly her size and taste. Or why they were all either black, grey, or blue, (not that she was complaining, those were her favorite colors). She'd put away the clothes she'd brought with her.

Chione dropped her carrot, and Hazel sighed and picked it up off the ground.

"What's happening here, Chi?" She asked the bunny as if she could answer.

Unsurprisingly, the bunny did not answer. Hazel's eyes flicked to a magazine she'd left open. It showed photos of the palace gardens in bloom, and even if it was winter and all the flowers had died and the trees had lost their leaves, Hazel still wanted to see them. She slipped into her favorite dress and her old black ankle boots. An odd fashion statement, but she didn't care.

"Don't trash the place while I'm gone, Chi," she told Chione, then slipped her phone, keys, and the map of the palace into her pocket and left.

Luckily, there was an elevator just down the hall from her room, saving her from having to walk down ten flights of stairs. She passed two other doors on the way, wondering who might be inside.

Amazingly, she didn't get lost on the way. The gardens were just out the back door of the palace. Sure enough, nothing was in bloom but the tall evergreen trees and short shrubs, but it was still beautiful. A large lake sat in the center of the massive estate, with a spewing fountain in the middle. Rows of evergreen hedges lined the gardens. A few dead leaves crunched under Hazel's feet as she walked. She passed a few gnome, fairy, and baby cherub stone statues.

Hazel stopped to inspect a tall holly bush.

"Careful there, it's sharp," a voice said from behind her.

She turned around. Behind her stood an elderly woman. She was several inches shorter than Hazel, with curly white hair and pale grey eyes. She wore a long ivory-colored dress and matching cardigan sweater. A golden necklace set with several rubies sat at her throat, and ruby earrings hung from her ears.

"Oh, um, hello," Hazel said, bowing her head. This lady didn't really look like she was royalty, but Julia had taught her to respect her elders.

"Apologies if I startled you," the woman said. "I am Lady Carol, former Queen of Besamor."

Hazel curtsied. "I am Princess Hazel of Avaehan."

The old woman looked her over with kind but curious eyes. "And you're here for the winter training? You have powers?"

Hazel shifted from her left foot to her right. "So I've been told."

"Don't worry, Princess. You'll figure it out soon enough."

"Do you... do you have powers?"

Lady Carol sighed. "Once I did, when I was much younger. They faded away once I stopped using them."

Hazel blanched. "Powers can fade?"

"Oh, yes, quite. Magic is like a muscle. If you don't use it, it withers away."

Hazel did not need that comparison.

The old lady smiled. "But don't worry about that! Training will help you harness that power. Don't let it go to waste."

Hazel nodded, just as a bell clanged up from a high tower of the palace.

"And that's assembly," Lady Carol said. "I'd get changed and down to the dining room, if I were you."