Cielle

Tour

She spent the day in her room, enjoying the peace and quiet. Cielle rang for Maya, her maid, and asked her to bring a glass of water while she continued reading her book. The fantasy novel she had brought along was captivating, telling the story of twin sisters who accidentally find themselves trapped in another world after reading an ancient book. Cielle found herself engrossed in the tale, particularly the part where the sisters were separated. She couldn't help but imagine how lonely and lost she would feel if she were separated from someone as close as a twin sister.

Her daydream was interrupted by the sound of Maya entering the room. Cielle thanked her for the water and was informed that the other children would be arriving soon. Maya then excused herself to prepare Cielle's attire for the meeting.

Cielle glanced at the dress Maya had initially picked out, a silk peach dress with white ribbons, but felt it didn't suit her well. Instead, she chose a similar dress in lilac and blues that complemented her unique features. Maya skillfully combed out Cielle's long, white-to-silver curly hair and suggested various styles, but Cielle opted for a simple braid.

As she waited for Donovan, Cielle tinkered with her necklaces, a gift from a dear friend. She slipped her dagger into the sheath wrapped around her leg, another gift from the Church and a family heirloom. Cielle put on a silver bangle with her full name engraved into it, a gift from her mother. Lastly, she donned a small leather bag, which magically transformed into an elegant silver clutch, another present from her mother.

With her preparations complete, there was a soft knock on her door, indicating Donovan's arrival. Cielle smiled at him and took his arm, allowing him to escort her to the greeting grounds.

"May I say, cousin, that you look extremely pleasing to the eye," Donovan playfully remarked, winking at her.

"Dear cousin, I wish I could say the same for you, but alas, I cannot lie," Cielle responded, pretending to be horrified before breaking into a giggle. Donovan looked at her in mock disbelief, then chuckled. She appreciated his light-heartedness and felt grateful to have him as a friend.

They stood side by side, waiting for the arrivals. Ruben, Claire, and Bently were the first to arrive, with the other three expected the next morning. The cars stopped in front of the royal houses, and the children disembarked, their bags already being carried to their designated house.

Donovan handed Cielle a key and informed her that her belongings had already been transported to the house. He directed her to the last room at the back. Clementine, already at the centre, greeted the children and introduced himself and Donovan. Ruben, Claire and Bently were the first ones who would be arriving. The other three would be here by tomorrow morning. The cars slowed to a stop in front of the royal houses and one by one they filed out, their drivers already carrying their bags towards the house where they would be staying.

"Good afternoon one and all, I do hope that your travels were comfortable and that you will enjoy your stay here.” he paused a bit before continuing. "As most of you know, I am Prince Clementine, and this is my twin brother, Donovan," he declared, causing Cielle to furrow her eyebrows in surprise. The two brothers seemed so different in both appearance and personality. Donovan winked and smiled at her before turning his attention back to the group.

All traces of the playful Donovan she knew was lost when he stood next to his brother. He stood with authority, his voice commanding every ear to listen.

“You will be escorted to your house where you will get a room of your choice except for one which already belongs to Miss Cielle Angellic.”

He nodded towards her and six pairs of eyes were trained on her face. She did not spare them a glance but listened to what else the brothers were saying.

“Dinner is at 7, miss it and it will be your loss,” Said Clementine as he took over from his brother.

“You have the rest of the week to get to know each other, settle down and get comfortable.”

He motioned for the butler – Cole to come forward, which he did.

“This is Cole. He will be escorting you to your house. Please be nice to him, he is my eyes and ears, so to speak, and it would be very disheartening to be sending one of you back home on the first day.” He waved his hand in dismissal and Cole began to lead them to the separate house behind the royal houses.

“Hey, I’m Ruben,” said Ruben, stretching out his hand towards Cielle. She took his hand and shook it.

“My name’s Cielle.”

“No s**t, like the sky Cielle?” said the girl at the back of her. She turned around to see who it was.

“Claire,” she smirked.

“Yeah, I guess like the sky, Claire, though I believe it’s spelt differently.”

“Bently,” said the person at the back, and they all nodded. They had now gotten on a first-name basis.

The large double doors opened, and they stepped inside. This house was spacious. They even felt like dwarves compared to the house.

“This is where you’ll be staying.” He nodded towards the inside of the building.

“Your rules are the same. Breakfast is at 8, Lunch is at 12 and dinner is at 7.” He motioned for us to step further inside and the doors closed behind them.

“Your rooms are upstairs, Males on one side, Females on the other.” He glared at them. “I expect you to behave like adults, each bedroom has its own bathroom, so I don’t expect anyone to be sharing them.” He paced a bit, then continued. “The dining room is below the staircase behind those doors.” He pointed to the right. “Dinners in the Dining Hall will be only at important times and maybe during the balls you’re expected to attend.”

“You will all be assigned a maid to clean your rooms when you’re not there.”

“You’ll only see them when they serve you breakfast, lunch, supper and during ball arrangements.”

“Any Questions?”

“Oye,” said Claire. “Can we eat now? I’m not sure about them but I am starving.”

Someone snickered. Cole muttered something under his breath but quickly smiled politely. He stepped over to a spot on the wall and pushed it. Within seconds, the side doors burst open and four trolleys filled with silver containers were whisked to the dining room.

“Food,” yelled Claire as she took off towards the silver trays. The others waited to be dismissed.

“You can go,” said Cole, suddenly looking very tired.

They walked quickly towards the dining room to meet Claire, already stuffing her face. They took their seats and began eating. After dinner, they slowly trooped to their beds exhaustedly one after the other, not caring about what happened next.