SWNOVELS Chapter 4
D’Arragon Palace stood majestic in the clearing. Its carved grey stone was of intricate design and beauty, its many tall turrets seeming to touch the clouds. Krikkit stared, lost in admiration of its grandeur. “It’s bigger than the whole world!” she exclaimed.
Krikkit thought of how she usually spent her Saturday afternoons at home, catching up on her reading. Now she was living one of those stories that she found so exciting.
The grounds around the castle were beautiful, with tall oak trees, large blooming bushes and a multitude of hedges and plants. A large creek, fringed with foliage of many kinds, ran behind the palace. In front of the palace was a large fountain, a statue of a huge lion rising from the midst of it. Krikkit could hardly take it all in. She had never seen any place this grand before.
An iron fence, shaped in many beautiful designs, guarded the front of the palace. Large stone pillars stood on either side of a central gate that opened into a courtyard. Two studded, double iron doors stood strong in the wall beyond the gate and appeared to be the main entrance of the palace.
Krikkit stretched her small neck as far as she could to stare at the outline against the sky. She loved the pointed turrets that seemed to reach the clouds and wondered how it would feel to stand inside one of them. Jara knelt and Krikkit dismounted. She stood close to the ram, completely overwhelmed by the hugeness and beauty of the palace.
“How can a place like this exist? I have never seen anything like it in my whole life! Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!”
Jara smiled at the girl, completely understanding her first impressions of D’Arragon Palace. “It is a palace, after all, the home for many centuries of the D’Arragon line of royalty.”
A group of men dressed in red velvet hats with black bands around them and red velvet cloaks, stood in a line around the perimeter of the courtyard. Standing a few feet apart from each other, their silver swords peeked through their cloaks, glinting in the bright sunshine. Not moving at all, they stared straight ahead.
“The Red Velvet Regiment,” said Jara, her face full of pride. “No one has ever conquered them and no one ever will.”
“I don’t think they know we’re here,” said Krikkit, staring at them and wondering how they stood so still. “What if they had itchy noses?”
Jara laughed out loud. “Oh they are very much aware of us, Krikkit, even though it doesn’t seem so. You will have to ask them what they do about itchy noses when you get the chance.”
Krikkit could think of nothing else to say. She simply stood staring at the palace and the men, feeling quite small and completely amazed.
“We can’t stand here all day.” Jara was already heading toward the entrance. “You will have many chances to see the palace, Krikkit.”
The excitement she felt since she climbed over the wall was nothing compared to what she was feeling now. Passing through the iron gate and over the courtyard, Krikkit followed the brown ram to the entrance.
“Use the knocker, child. It’s time we announced our arrival.”
Krikkit raised the large iron ring attached to the door and let it fall.
“That’s all we need to do. Keeper Fie will answer. He’s the keeper for the princes.”
Krikkit could not help but wonder what a keeper was as she stood waiting for her knock to be answered. A moment or two passed before the door opened and a man, with hair as white as snow, stood in the doorway.
“I was beginning to wonder when you would return, Jara. You are not usually away from the princes these days for so long a time,” said the man, his glance running over the small girl who stood beside the ram.
“I knew they were safe with you,” was Jara’s simple reply. “This is Krikkit. I found her napping in the outer courtyard. Take care of her and see that she eats and rests.”
Startled at the thought of being without Jara by her side as she prepared to meet more strange people, Krikkit protested in dismay.
“Oh, Jara. Don’t leave!”
“Don’t be frightened child. Keeper Fie will take good care of you until I return.”
After gently nudging Krikkit towards the door, Jara turned and walked away. Left staring at the man in the doorway, the young girl had no idea what to expect. However, Keeper Fie smiled in a very friendly way, opened the door wider and motioned for her to enter.
He asked no questions as he led the way down a long narrow hallway and Krikkit found she had to hurry to keep up with his long strides. She didn’t have time for more than a quick peek at the magnificence of the palace. Before long, the child found herself sitting at a large wooden table in a room that seemed to be the kitchen. It was massive to the young girl’s eyes.
“Since the princes are in classes this afternoon and it is long past the noon meal, you may enjoy eating here rather than in the great dining room alone.”
“You mean it’s bigger than this?”
A roar of laughter escaped from the man with the white hair. “It is a little bigger than the kitchen, yes.”
He bustled around, bringing her fruits and cheese, setting a large beaker of ice-cold milk in front of her. Krikkit raised it to her lips and drank thirstily as Keeper Fie smiled his approval.
“This should see you through to the evening meal. When you finish, I will show you where you can take your rest,” he told her.
If she had been at home, Krikkit would have rebelled at such a notion, but she suddenly felt sleepy. The thought of a nap quite appealed to her. Keeper Fie sat at the end of the long table as she quickly ate, saying very little. He smiled at her every now and then, as if he was well aware of what she was feeling.
By the time she was finished, Krikkit was more than ready to rest and followed the friendly man through the long hallway again. They climbed a huge staircase with a carved wooden banister that wound itself up to the rooms above. Meeting no one else on the way, Krikkit followed Keeper Fie into one of the rooms.
“For you, my princess,” Keeper stated, giving her a deep bow.
Krikkit felt a giggle escape her as she watched him. Responding to the answering twinkle of laughter in the man’s eyes, the young child giggled again.
“I will come and get you in a couple of hours, so enjoy your nap. You may not be in your bed again until late this evening.”
With that mysterious statement, he left her, the door closing softly behind his departing figure. Krikkit was completely entranced by the huge bed with a pink frilly canopy that filled the center of the room. Stepping on to the small set of steps that stood ready beside the bed, Krikkit climbed upon it. She lay down, sleep coming over her almost instantly.