More Than a Princess

by E. D. Baker

So Poppy did, telling her about the beds of roses and lilies, hollyhocks and daisies, the small pond and the big fountain, the shrubs shaped like animals and the paths leading from one end of the garden to the other. The fairy described it in such detail that Aislin went to sleep dreaming about it that night.

  Aislin was still hoping that the seamstress would bring the gown the next day, but by late afternoon she couldn’t wait any longer. She had to get out and do something, even if it was just to stretch her legs. No one was in the corridor, so she slipped out of her room and started walking. When she turned the corner and finally did see someone, the man didn’t give her a second glance. She followed him down the stairs, then turned toward the Great Hall.

  Stepping inside the hall, she paused to look around, trying to remember what Poppy had told her. The hall was a big room filled with tables and a raised dais at the end, just like at home. Some of the tables were empty, but there were enough people sitting together while they talked, played dice, or ate a belated meal that the room seemed full. Aislin was surprised to see that many of them were soldiers wearing a griffin insignia on their tunics.

  “Go to the Great Hall, which you can’t miss,” Aislin recited. “Go out the door farthest from the castle entrance, and turn right. Go past the metal suit, then out the third door to the left. The garden is straight ahead behind a wall.”

  “You sound lost,” said a boy sitting at a table by the door. He set down the book he’d been reading and looked at Aislin with interest. He’d been so quiet that Aislin hadn’t even noticed him. Seeing him now, she saw that he was a nice-looking boy with dark, curly hair and a friendly smile. Aislin thought he was probably around her age, if not a bit older.

  “I am lost,” she admitted. “There are two doors at the end farthest from the castle entrance. I don’t know if I’m supposed to take the one on the left or the right.”

  “If you’re looking for the garden, you take the door on the left,” the boy told her. “The door to the right will take you down the corridor to the throne room. You must be new here. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before.”

  “I am new,” Aislin replied. “And all this is new to me.”

  The boy laughed. “It does take some getting used to. I have to admit that I got lost quite often when I first arrived.”

  “Have you been here long?” Aislin asked him.

  “It feels like forever, but it’s really been only a few months,” said the boy. “That’s more than enough, if you ask me. This place doesn’t get any less overwhelming.”

  Aislin turned to look around. It was messier than she was used to, and didn’t smell very good, but it wasn’t any noisier or busier than her Great Hall at home.

  “I don’t mean the hall,” said the boy. “You’ll know what I mean after you get to know the people. Ah, I was waiting for someone and here he is. It was nice meeting you …”

  “Aislin,” she told him.

  “I’m Tomas,” he replied with a smile.

  “There you are!” cried a handsome boy as he approached the table. “You’re keeping us waiting. Come along before the girls start their walk without us.”

  “I’m coming,” said Tomas. “Although I’d really rather stay here.”

  When he stood up, Aislin realized that he towered over the other boy. He was even taller than most fairies around his age, but where they were slender and wiry, Tomas was broad and muscular. Aislin liked the way he looked back at her as he walked away. She, too, wished that he didn’t have to go.

  After taking Tomas’s advice, Aislin finally found her way to the garden. Although she was sure it was beautiful by human standards, she thought it was boring and much too orderly. A tall border of cypress trees ringed the entire garden. The flowers were planted in rows, the paths were straight, and the fountain was nice, but not nearly as lovely or interesting as a waterfall. When she started to explore, she discovered why the garden wasn’t very big; the curtain wall surrounding the castle was only feet from the last of the cypress trees.

  As Aislin drew closer to the stone wall, she sensed that something was wrong. At some point in its past, something big and heavy had hit it. A siege engine, perhaps, she thought, remembering her lessons about humans. Most of the fractures deep in the stone had yet to reveal themselves to the naked eye, but Aislin could sense that some were very close to the surface; so close, in fact, that pieces were about to break off.

  Placing her hand against the wall, she closed her eyes and spoke to the stone. “Mend yourself,” she said with a quiver to her voice.

  Aislin could feel the faint vibration of fractures closing as the stone blocks made themselves whole again. In tune with the wall, she could hear the faintest sound of stone grinding against stone. Although she doubted that any humans could hear it, she knew that some animals could. She hadn’t expected it to be a problem until she heard a mule bray and start to kick the weakened wall behind it. Even though she couldn’t see them, Aislin could feel cracks race through blocks, spreading as the mule continued to kick. She tried to stop the cracks from growing larger, but there were too many to handle all at once.

  Pressing both hands against the stone, Aislin could feel added pressure on the blocks as a man hurried down the steps from the top of the curtain wall to see to the mule. She felt when the fractures made the stone crumble beneath his feet. The man shouted as he began to fall. In a flash, Aislin drew strength from the mended stone and sent power to the weakened sections, making them shift and angle into a ramp that caught the man and allowed him to slide safely to the ground.

  Aislin stepped away from the wall when she heard voices shouting. “Holstin, are you all right?” one asked.

  “Just fine!” the man replied. “I can’t believe that happened.”

  “It’s a wonder you weren’t hurt like Shilling was last week,” said another. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”

  “Who tied a mule here?” someone shouted. “It should never have been tied this close to the wall.”

  “This wouldn’t have happened if the stone hadn’t been weak. We’ll have to repair this section, too.”

  Aislin couldn’t do anything about the broken blocks with the men standing there, but she could fix what they couldn’t see. She set her hand against the wall again, and stood there until she was sure that all the fractures were mended and the fissures filled. When she finally turned away, Aislin decided that it was time to go back to her room. As far as she knew, no one could have seen her, but it was better not to take unnecessary chances.

  Aislin had passed the fountains and had almost reached the garden’s entrance when she heard people talking on the other side of the cypress trees. She soon realized that it was Tomas and his companions.

  “Would you believe I actually found him talking to a servant girl?” the handsome boy was saying. “And she wasn’t even pretty! Well, her face was pretty, but her skin was as tanned as a goat girl’s and she was as plump as the cook’s daughter.”

  “I think she’s very pretty,” said Tomas. “I like her just the way she is.”

  Someone snickered as if he’d actually said something amusing.

  “Has anyone ever told you that you aren’t a very nice person, Rory?” asked Tomas.

  “Why would they?” Rory said with a laugh. “Few people would dare to talk to me like that. Besides, I’m a prince. I don’t have to be nice.”

  “Actually, I think princes have an even greater need to be nice than people of lesser rank,” said Tomas. “You have a responsibility to your subjects and you should show them compassion.”

  Rory seemed to think this was extra funny, because he laughed loudly. The girls who were with him also found it amusing, laughing just as hard. Aislin counted at least three, although there could have been more.

  “You say the most bizarre things, Tomas!” cried one of the girls. “I never know if you’re trying to be funny!”

  “I always mean what I say,” Tomas replied, which made them laugh all over aga
in.

  Aislin hurried off then, not wanting to meet these people. They weren’t very nice, laughing at Tomas and the poor servant girl like that. And if that was the prince, was he the one she was supposed to meet? He probably was, unless there was another prince in the castle. She’d have to send Poppy out to investigate more than just the castle’s layout.

  Soon after she returned to her room, a servant brought her supper with enough for Poppy as well. As soon as the servant was gone, Aislin turned to her fairy friend and said, “Instead of eating with me tonight, I want you to eat with the servants and see what you can learn about the people here. Find out how many are in the royal family and what they’re like.”

  “But I was going to ask you about your walk!” said Poppy. “Did you see anything interesting?”

  “I did,” Aislin told her. “We can talk about that later. You can learn a lot from the servants and I think I should know about King Tyburr’s family before I meet them.”

  “You’re right,” Poppy said, adjusting her scarf. “I’ll see what I can find out. This might actually be fun!”

  Aislin wasn’t very hungry for the bland human food in front of her, so she only picked at it before getting up from the little table. She was preparing for bed when Twinket said, “It isn’t fair! I wish you’d send me on an errand, too. I can go a lot of places at night.”

  “Maybe sometime, but you’d have to be really careful not to let anyone see you move,” said Aislin.

  The doll was clapping her hands when Poppy walked in, closing the door behind her. “What are you so happy about?” Poppy asked the doll.

  “Aislin might send me on an errand!” she exclaimed.

  “What did you learn?” Aislin asked her fairy friend.

  Poppy grinned and took a seat on the edge of Aislin’s bed. “A lot and it’s all interesting. I went to the hall where the servants eat and they acted like I was one of them. It wasn’t hard to get the maids talking. King Tyburr has two children. Prince Rory is his oldest. He thinks very highly of himself. His sister is named Selene. The servants say she used to be nice, but she hasn’t talked to them since the day she surrounded herself with a group of nasty girls.”

  Aislin’s heart sank. There was only one prince after all! The rude boy who had been talking to Tomas was indeed the prince she was supposed to meet.

  “What about the queen?” asked Twinket.

  “Her name is Queen Tatya. She’s King Tyburr’s second wife. His first wife was a commoner named Cloe. They say she was plump and pretty and really sweet. Everyone liked her a lot and the king was crazy about her. She died when Selene was four. King Tyburr married Tatya three years ago. She was a princess he met when he was traveling. The women I talked to said it wasn’t a love match. They say she isn’t very nice and that she complains about everything. She is also expecting her first baby soon.”

  “King Tyburr’s family sounds awful!” cried Aislin. “I don’t want to marry into a family like that!”

  “Maybe we can go home soon,” said Twinket.

  “First I’ll have to meet the prince. Then I’ll talk to the king,” said Aislin.

  Early the next morning, when Aislin was still asleep, Lady Speely and the seamstress knocked on her door. When she didn’t answer right away, the two women barged in and dumped the gowns on her bed. Aislin was struggling to sit up under their weight when Lady Speely went into the dressing room and emerged a minute later carrying Aislin’s two old gowns. “You’ll be expected in the Great Hall for supper tonight,” the woman announced. “I suggest you wear your new yellow gown.” With a swirl of her skirts, she was out the door, the seamstress right behind her.

  The door had scarcely closed when Twinket cried, “Oh no!” and scrambled off the chair in the corner.

  “What’s wrong?” Aislin asked as the doll ran into the dressing room.

  Twinket came out wringing her little hands. “Poppy is gone! That human took her!”

  Aislin swung her legs over the side of her bed and slid to the floor. “What do you mean she took her?”

  “Remember how Poppy didn’t want to sleep on the floor? She’s been getting little and sleeping in the pocket of your gray gown. She told me that the pocket lint was soft and warm and much better than an old, lumpy pallet.”

  “And Lady Speely took the gown!” Aislin cried.

  “How are we going to get Poppy back?” asked Twinket.

  “I guess I’ll have to find Lady Speely and ask for the gowns,” said Aislin. “I don’t know where her rooms are, though. I’ll just have to ask someone in the corridor and—”

  The door opened and Poppy walked in, carrying the two old gowns. “Can you believe they were going to throw these out? These are perfectly good pedrasi-made gowns and better than anything a human could make. Just compare the size of the stitches!” She set the gowns on the bed beside the new ones.

  Aislin was relieved to see her friend and more than a little surprised. “How did you get them back?” asked Twinket.

  “I waited until they set the gowns in a pile to get tossed down the refuse chute,” Poppy replied. “As soon as they left, I got big again and grabbed the gowns. You wouldn’t believe the things they throw out in this place. Look at this!” The fairy held up a book with a torn page and set it on the bed beside the gowns.

  “That’s the book Tomas was reading yesterday!” Aislin exclaimed. “I wonder why he threw it away.”

  “Have you looked at your new gowns yet?” Poppy asked, examining the sleeve of the one on top.

  “No,” said Aislin. “I’m supposed to wear the yellow one to the Great Hall tonight.”

  “Yellow, huh? That would be this one,” Poppy said, digging a gown out of the pile.

  “Try it on, Princess!” said Twinket. “Let’s see how it looks.”

  Aislin couldn’t help but feel a little excited. Although she wasn’t as clothes-conscious as some fairies, she liked getting new clothes as much as anyone. Poppy helped her put the gown on and settle it around her hips. When she glanced down, Aislin’s excited smile disappeared and she gasped.

  “That has to be the ugliest gown I’ve ever seen!” Poppy declared. “Why would anyone think that was pretty enough for a princess?”

  “Maybe the seamstress doesn’t know how to do her job,” said Twinket. “And if Lady Speely helped her pick this color out, they both have awful taste.”

  The tension and worry that had been wearing on Aislin for the last few days suddenly took their toll on her. Covering her face with her hands, she burst into tears.

  “Oh, Princess, I’m sorry!” Poppy cried. “I didn’t mean you looked bad, just this awful dress!”

  “I know I look horrible in it!” Aislin wailed through her tears. “It makes me look like a daffodil is devouring me!”

  The floor began to vibrate, shaking the furniture, and Aislin’s hairbrush fell off the table with a clatter.

  “Those stupid humans!” Twinket exclaimed. “I hate them!”

  Aislin’s chest heaved with a few ragged breaths and she sniffled. “They’re not all bad. A few are actually nice,” she said.

  “When did you meet a nice one?” asked Poppy. “Some of the servants seemed nice enough, but you haven’t talked to any of them.”

  “On my walk,” Aislin said as she wiped away her tears. “I met a boy named Tomas who was very friendly.” The shaking stopped as the princess thought about how nice Tomas had been and the way he’d smiled at her before walking away.

  “I knew something happened on that walk!” said Poppy.

  “What about the dress?” Twinket asked. “I say we have two choices. We can cut it up into little tiny bits and toss them out the window, or we can burn it in the fireplace. Either one would make us feel better.”

  “We don’t need to destroy it,” Poppy told her. “I was going to alter the gowns I brought back so Lady Speely and the seamstress wouldn’t recognize them. I’d be happy to change these, too. I was hoping that the seamstress had at least
some talent, but apparently I was wrong. I learned a few things from my aunt. Let’s see what we can do with this.”

  “That would be wonderful,” Aislin said, and gave her friends a wobbly smile. “I’m sorry I got so upset.”

  Poppy shrugged. “We don’t blame you. They haven’t been treating you very well ever since we got here. At least we can do something about these dresses.” Raising her hand, she pointed at the yellow gown. “We’ll start with a softer shade of yellow.” A sprinkle of gold shot from her finger, turning to glitter around the gown. The color changed from a harsh yellow to a buttercream color that looked pretty against Aislin’s skin.

  “Get rid of the bows, too!” Twinket said, tilting her head as she gave the dress a critical look. “And those horrible flounces.”

  More sparkling gold made the bows and flounces disappear. “And I’ll change the lines of the gown a little,” Poppy murmured.

  When she was done, the gown was far more flattering and all three of the girls were pleased.

  “Try on another one!” cried Twinket. “Let’s see what Poppy can do with it!”

  The girls made a game of it, trying to see which gown was the worst. Aislin thought it had been the yellow, but Poppy thought it was the bright pink. She turned it into a soft, muted rose that Twinket said was her favorite color. Twinket hated the ugly blue gown until Poppy made it the same shade as a robin’s egg. They all liked the iron-gray gown after Poppy changed it into the color of a dove’s wings. When they were finished, the girls were satisfied that Aislin would look her best.

  Careful to keep Aislin’s old gowns suitable for a maid and not too pretty, Poppy altered them for herself in no time at all. When she was done, the girls held their own fashion show, trying on their new gowns all over again, while Twinket modeled a scarf dress and one made out of a discarded ruffle. They danced to nonexistent music, collapsing in laughter when they were too tired to go on.

  The girls were lying sprawled on the floor. Aislin sat up and looked around. With all the magic that had been used in the room, she couldn’t help but notice that the room itself seemed brighter. Even the air smelled better, as if a fresh spring breeze had wafted away the stale, musty air. “I love what you did to the gowns, Poppy, but we need to be more careful about using magic. I think the human world looks the way it does because magic has been gone from it for so long. Bringing it back even a little bit might make some changes that people could notice.”