I tried not to let the relief show on my face. I had had more than enough of these tunnels for one day. Or one lifetime, more like.
We only walked a short distance before Oliver stopped at a large wooden door and pulled it open. I followed him into a large store full of pottery. He nodded a polite greeting to the storekeeper but led me straight outside.
I drew in a deep breath of fresh air and held my face up to the remaining rays of the sun. It looked like we had lost most of the day in there, and my stomach rumbled as if just noticing the passage of time.
“Come on,” said Oliver. “Let’s get back. I don’t want to miss dinner as well.”
In the light of day I could see that dust and dirt covered us both. And somewhere along the way I seemed to have ripped my skirt. I sighed. Another one ruined. At this rate I’d have no wardrobe left soon.
I was becoming familiar enough with the detachment of the locals that I wasn’t in the least surprised when we wandered into the entrance hall in such a bedraggled state and received no response from anyone. Oliver, however, was still new to it all. At least from this side of it, anyway. He looked around and actually shivered a little as he watched the blank and uninterested face of a passing servant.
“It’s almost creepy,” he said.
“Welcome to my world.” I shook my head. “Just wait until you get the same reaction to being abducted.”
He sucked in a breath. “Poor Emmeline and Giselle. They’re not like that normally, I swear. Well…” He chuckled, looking every inch the older brother—a look I knew all too well. “Emmeline is a little like that. Far too sensible and serious for her age. But Giselle…” He shook his head. “I wish you could properly meet her.”
“And I shall once we work out how to defeat this thing—whatever it is.” I tried to inject more confidence into my voice than I really felt.
Oliver met my gaze, and then his eyes fell to my hands. “You know I actually think we might have a chance. Now that we have you on our side.” His warm smile reminded me forcibly of the feel of his lips against mine, and I clamped down without thought on a flicker of warmth in my middle. To my surprise it went out instantly.
A slow smile spread across my face. Maybe I was actually getting the hang of this thing. I remembered the power that had brushed aside a cave in. Maybe he was right. Maybe we did have a chance.
The next day I was eager to try out my powers again, but I had no idea how—or where—to start. And when Emmeline and Giselle turned up to my rooms to invite me to spend the day with them, I couldn’t think of a reason to refuse.
As the day crawled by in their uninteresting company, I wished I had been quicker with an excuse. I kept thinking of what Oliver had said about them. How different this would be if they were their true selves. I tried to see hints of it in their words or actions, but the honest truth was that I could barely distinguish between them.
Emmeline, at seventeen, was quite a bit taller than her fifteen-year-old sister. And although their fair coloring was identical, their features were different enough. And yet their manner made them almost into twins.
They gave me a never-ending tour of the palace, the highlight of which was a delicious midday meal, served in a small but elegant dining room. I had hoped Oliver would join us—so I could have some real conversation if nothing else—but I saw no sign of him all day.
I hoped I would be able to escape in the afternoon, but it seemed that we had seen only half the palace before lunch. I sighed and trailed after them again. At least life as a princess had given me some experience with surviving boring days full of unavoidable responsibilities. Even as the youngest of seven, I had been required to attend a myriad of official functions. And the number of them had only increased as more and more of my older siblings had married and moved out of Lanover.
I thought a little wistfully of the years I spent running through my own palace with the two sisters directly above me—Cordelia and Celeste. We had been good friends before they both married and moved to Northhelm. I examined Emmeline and Giselle from the back. Did they have the potential to be equally good friends? Once they were freed, of course.
The thought brought another puzzle to my mind. That first gale I had produced had shaken something loose in Oliver, even if it hadn’t completely freed him. But no one else seemed to have been affected by it. Why?
I pondered the question, not listening to Emmeline’s drone as she conducted the tour, until I looked around and realized we were in a display room of some kind. I turned my attention back to her words in time to hear this was where the Eldonian royal family both stored and displayed their most valued treasures.
I wandered around the room with interest, examining several crowns, and an intricate golden scepter. Two of the small pedestals held ordinary-looking objects, protected under glass domes. One was a simple slipper, and another a wooden flagon, interesting only for the simple carvings that decorated it.
The pedestals and domes reminded me instantly of the empty one I had seen next to the portrait on my first day. Seeing the same display case here only confirmed my impression that the dome was meant to hold something.
At my questioning look, Emmeline explained that they were ancient godmother artifacts. “Their enchantment is long gone,” she said. “But they hold great value to us still as relics of the past.”
Was there an object missing from the pedestal in the corridor then? I was about to ask Emmeline about it, when another thought flashed through my mind, distracting me. Something Sophie had told me before her wedding. I looked around the room, scanning the walls.
“Where is your royal mirror? I would love to see it.”
A soft sigh sounded from Giselle, and I focused my attention on her. She met my eyes, and her own reflected sadness. The sign of an emotion—any emotion—made me cross closer to her, curious.
“As would I,” she said. “But it was lost many years ago. When I was just a small child.”
“Lost? How can such an object be lost?”
Sophie had explained to me that all of these kingdoms possessed an enchanted mirror. It had been gifted to each of the monarchs by the godmothers too many years ago to count and had been passed down from generation to generation. It allowed each royal family to see and hear events happening far from them. They could either watch over their own people or use it to communicate with the royal mirrors in other kingdoms.
I knew the Palinaran royal mirror had been limited in its functions by the curse, and I had suspected the same of the Eldonian one—or the king would have used it to find his children. But I hadn’t expected to hear he didn’t have it at all. Sophie had described it as a large, wall-mounted mirror, and it didn’t seem like the kind of thing that was prone to being lost.
Giselle seemed confused—trying to remember what had happened, or perhaps trying to remember why she cared. I moved even closer, fascinated by the signs of struggle within her. She looked up at me, her gaze so lost and confused that I couldn’t help the surge of compassion that filled me.
“Celine…” Her voice was soft. “I can’t…” She shook her head and tried again. “I can’t…”
I closed the remaining distance between us and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Try Giselle! Try to remember.” I wanted so desperately to really meet her—this friend who might be.
And though the feelings were gentler this time, they were no less strong. A surge ran up my arm and through my hand into her shoulder. She reeled, almost falling, as a bright illumination lit her from within. For a moment she looked as if she would take flight, her whole body rising from the ground, but then the light was gone, and she gasped and crumpled in on herself.
I caught her beneath one arm, steadying her as she gazed wide-eyed at me and then around the room. Her gaze lingered on her sister, examining a painting on the far side of the room and apparently oblivious to what had just happened, before turning back to me.
“Celine!” She stopped to take several more gasping b
reaths before righting herself and moving away from me. “Celine! What just happened?”
As much as the whole thing had taken me by surprise, I was at least slightly more prepared than I had been with Oliver.
“It’s a long story. But the short version is that you’ve been under some sort of enchantment. Maybe. We think. And that the godmothers seem to have given me some sort of power to break it. Sometimes.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out then.” Her sardonic tone took me so much by surprise that I laughed out loud.
“It’s nice to meet you, Giselle. I have the feeling that I really haven’t met you before.”
“Really? I seem to remember something about a Princess Tourney. It’s all strangely hazy, though.” She turned to me with wide eyes. “Did I fall down a very deep hole?”
I grimaced. “Yes. But that is definitely a story for another day.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You said we earlier. Who else have you freed?”
I nodded. She was sharp. “Only Oliver, I’m afraid.”
She looked back at her sister. “Can you free Emmeline as well? You could do it right now!”
I could tell by her tone that the devotion I had previously observed between the sisters wasn’t false—despite Oliver describing them as so different from one another.
“I don’t know. To be honest, I don’t really have these powers completely under control.”
Giselle frowned. “You could try at least.”
I shrugged. “I suppose so.”
Giselle immediately began to drag me toward her sister. “What do you need to do?”
“Um, touch her. I think. Like how I had my hand on your shoulder.”
“All right. Try it.” She gave me a final shove forward, and I approached Emmeline.
The other princess turned calmly to face me. “This painting shows my great-grandparents.”
I glanced at it quickly, then placed my hand on her arm. I tried to muster up some warmth or emotion. But the only feeling I could manage was awkwardness. Still, Giselle’s face silently pleaded with me to try harder, so I stood there a moment longer, trying to spark something to life inside me, even if only pity.
The pity seemed to work, a little, and a soft tingle grew in my chest. I focused on it and then on my hand.
“Wake up, Emmeline,” I said firmly.
Nothing happened. I tried again.
“Wake up!”
She looked at me quizzically. “I’m already awake, Celine. Did I look like I had fallen asleep?”
“Um…” I backed away, shrugging helplessly at Giselle.
Thankfully Emmeline shrugged the whole thing off without need for further explanation—turning instead to continue her tour as if nothing had happened.
Giselle watched her with wide eyes.
“That’s what it’s like,” I whispered to her under my breath. “That’s what everyone is like under the enchantment.”
She swallowed and shook her head, her eyes growing even wider. “You and I have a lot to talk about.”
Chapter 11
I didn’t see Oliver until the next day, but obviously Giselle had found him sometime after she and I had parted. He strode up to me, his face split by a broad smile, and actually lifted me off my feet, spinning me around.
He swung me through the air easily, his arms firm and strong. Warmth filled me, but I kept it carefully contained inside. I didn’t want any more unexpected outbursts of any kind.
When he put me back on my feet, I couldn’t help grinning back at him. “I take it you’ve seen your sister.”
“You did it! You freed Giselle.” He regarded me curiously. “Does that mean you’re learning to control it?”
My smile turned rueful. “To be honest, I didn’t actually intend to free Giselle. Not ahead of time, anyway. It was a spur-of-the-moment sort of thing. And it didn’t work at all when I tried it on Emmeline.”
His face fell. “Yes, Giselle told me about that.”
I thought of the warmth his presence seemed to spark and the progress I had made on containing it, but I decided against mentioning those. He didn’t need to know everything about my powers.
“I’ve been thinking,” he said. “Clearly the godmothers have given you these powers and sent you here to help us free ourselves. So we need you to learn to control them.”
I glared at him. “I’m trying!”
“Well, I was thinking I could help. I know a place where we could go—somewhere private and secluded, where you won’t be able to damage anything if you suddenly start a fire or a tornado or something.”
I raised both eyebrows. “And you’re going to help me. In this private, secluded spot.” I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”
He stared at me for a second and then burst out laughing. “Not like that. I swear. Not that I would be unwilling, of course.” He grinned at me wickedly. “But it isn’t the most practical means to control it.”
I put my hands on my hips. “I forgave you because we were literally going to die otherwise,” I said. “But if you ever try something like that again, I’ll just turn all those ‘powerful emotions’ against you instead of a pile of rocks.”
He held up both hands. “I promise Princess Celine that I will never kiss you again.” He leaned in, dropping his voice to a whisper. “Unless you ask me to, of course.”
I rolled my eyes. “Sometimes I think I liked you better when you were a walking ice block.”
He just continued to grin, unrepentant, and I shook my head.
“All right, then. Let’s give this practice thing a try. If you’re certain there’s nothing I can damage, then I guess it can’t do any harm.”
I made him wait while I ran up and changed my dress, though. I’d already ruined two in Eldon, and I was wearing one of my favorites. When I came back down in my plainest dress—a fine wool gown with intricate embroidery—his eyes laughed at me.
“Yes,” I said, before he could say anything. “This is my most practical dress. I am a princess, remember?”
He grinned. “I didn’t say anything.”
“Your eyes did,” I muttered as I stalked past him and out of the huge front doors. He had said I wouldn’t be able to damage anything which meant there was no way we were staying in the palace.
He caught up within a few steps and directed me up into the mountain city. To my unspoken relief, he made no move to take me back into the tunnels. Instead he led me upward by the most direct route before selecting a small side road. We quickly branched off even the smaller road, taking a steep—and apparently unending—staircase.
I was puffing slightly—and trying to hide it—by the time he led me sideways off the stair and onto something that looked more like a goat track than a road. I eyed him suspiciously, and he shrugged.
“Secluded, remember?”
We followed the track for some time while I tried not to think of the drop off to my left. We weren’t exactly walking along a cliff edge, but it was close enough. The path wound around a large outcropping of rock and then turned sharply. I stopped and blinked.
Oliver spread his arms wide. “Welcome to my favorite place in the world.”
I walked forward slowly and spun around so I could take it in. I could see why. Tucked back here, hidden by that outcropping, was a large mountain meadow. The flat space spread well back from the edge of the mountain, ringed by several tall evergreen trees. Soft grass covered the ground, and I even saw a few bright wildflowers—the first I had seen in this not-quite-spring. A burbling sound drew me toward the far side of the meadow where I found a small stream, the mountain water clear and icy cold, but not actually frozen.
“It’s beautiful,” I said softly.
“And perfect for what we need.”
I eyed Oliver uncertainly. “Up until I accidentally burn it down.”
He seemed undaunted. “This meadow has survived worse than you—I promise.”
I looked around at the beaut
y uneasily and then shrugged. I wasn’t likely to find a better spot, and I did need to learn to control my powers.
I turned back to Oliver. “So what now?”
He rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes thoughtful. “I’ve been thinking about that. Emotions are key, but it doesn’t seem to matter which ones. So I guess it’s up to you. What emotion do you think you can most effectively conjure at will?”
“Uhh…” I stared at him blankly.
He narrowed his eyes at me consideringly. “Anger, maybe?”
“Hey!” I put my hands on my hips. “Are you saying I’m an angry person?”
He kept his face straight, but I noticed his lips twitching. “Anger is a strong emotion, that’s all.”
I walked around in a circle, needing the activity while my mind raced. Could I make myself angry? This beautiful haven didn’t promote anger. My gaze turned upward, to where I could see the higher slopes of the mountain. Snow lay heavy there just as it did in pockets throughout the Eldonian capital. And yet it was well into spring. It should have melted by now, turning that little stream into a strong current.
I glanced back at Oliver, his expression curious as he watched me silently. The fire in his blue eyes still burned, making his face alive and bright with color. So different from how he had been before. Whatever this enchantment was, it did the worst thing possible—stripping people’s true selves.
I shivered at the thought and felt something stir within me. It was anger, yes, but also fear. I couldn’t imagine anything worse than losing myself.
Burning heat erupted from my chest and surged down my arms. It took me by surprise, but I clenched my hands into fists just in time, holding it inside. Nothing happened, and elation filled me. I’d done it! I’d called it, and I’d controlled it.
The warmth inside me turned ferocious, and for the first time I felt an uncomfortable burning sensation. I looked around frantically and spotted a large boulder on one edge of the meadow. Striding toward it, I held both fists out in front of me before unfurling my fingers. Pointing them at the stone, I flung all the heat down my arms and through my hands.
Beyond the Four Kingdoms Box Set 1: Three Fairytale Retellings (Four Kingdoms and Beyond Box Sets Book 3) Page 63