Princess Freckles

7. Day One

"I see it! The Pink Palace!"

They'd been riding in the carriage for two hours, but it had seemed longer. They had only just passed the first iron gate and were now within the walls surrounding the royal grounds. The triplets had gone on and on about the Prince once more and what they thought the Queen must be like. The princess was brought up several times, but not as much as Chammielle would have liked. It was all romance in their eyes, and the realization their dreams for themselves might go to their sister beside them or another noble's daughter entirely did not seem to dawn on them.

The white stone walls were in view and covered in pale pink climbing roses. They seemed to be a variety that would bloom continually until the first frost and then a week after the last frost; as expected of the botanists belonging to the Pink Crown. The perfectly white gravel beneath the wheels of their carriage crunched softly compared to the dirt highway or the cobblestones in the towns they'd passed through. They were very close.

"There! Behind the cherry trees!"

"No, there!"

The girls were giddy and certain they were very close.

"Aster, the walls surrounding the palace go on for a while. We should not see sight nor sound of the palace until we are a quarter mile from the entrance."

Her mouth dropped open.

"No! It cannot be so far!"

They drove on a while longer before the girls gave up. The inner gate was nearly two miles from the first gate in the capital city, Rosa. It was the carriage route, so anyone trying to smuggle goods out or assassins in would be cut off by any number of hidden emergency barricades and royal guards. It had to be long for such purposes, but also for the biannual Royal Ball to mark the new year and the height of Summer. The line of nobles' carriages were unending, and it took them all in stride.

Finally she spied the statues of the favorite steeds belonging to King Alderswitch I and King Fredrik II along the walls on either side. She smiled and cleared her throat. The girls looked up, bored.

"I believe we will see the palace any moment now."

They jumped from their seats and hung their heads out the windows. All three of them were the picture of health and exuberant youth. Exactly what Garten liked to see and often celebrated. Healthy and thriving, a good omen for the well-being of the kingdom in the coming year. Any one of them becoming Queen would be worthy of their subjects' adoration.

She pulled at one of her own newly blonde curls.

Her new look had not grown on her since the day before. Daisy had insisted on showing off her softer curls and styled it so she also had framing pieces instead of the usual tight bun. Her curls also tickled the back of her neck as they draped through the knot like chignon and cascaded partially down her back. Fortunately her dress was not off the shoulder today, but had a high back and well fitted bodice. A peachy pink shimmering fabric with pale blue and lavender stitched marshmallow flowers. She hadn't bothered with face powder, but opted for a coral lip paint.

The palace was well within view now, its round towers at each corner, and the windows glinting from every story like gems. It was all thick stone washed with lime and rose quartz so it had a creamy pink hue in the full sun. The roofline was a deep rose pink that loomed high above, and you could see the vast manicured garden stretching out before it making it look impossibly taller. Perfectly squared rose hedges stood impossibly tall and marked the garden maze in all its own glory. It was a place you could easily lose your way in, but not as easily as the palace itself.

Chammielle fidgeted with her gloves at the wrist. The dress had 3/4 sleeves so below the elbow to the top of her wrists her freckles were exposed. They were less prominent now, but she couldn't abide having them on display. What little cleavage was visible also sported the spots and she hated it.