on approach to the enchanted castle

And with those fond farewells, Demi found herself again on the path of breadcrumbs, with Monday as her guide.

The way forward through the trees was picturesque and calming. This last effect was a good one for Demi, who was still struggling with nervousness and an elevated heart rate.

It was a little alarming, being a princess.

That was a new thought for her, one she had never considered before.

Princesses needed people to lean on. That much was becoming very readily apparent. She had taken for granted the others she had leaned on in the past: her mother, Robert Grave, Alexis Bryce, counting them to be there for her always. But now they were gone, or otherwise occupied by their own responsibilities, and Demi had not yet found anyone that she trusted enough to lean on.

(She thought — she hoped that Matthias Eisenreich might be one of those people. At the very least, she did not have to be anyone in particular for him, which was an enormous relief. Still, it wasn’t as if he would be on hand for all of the challenges of her school life. She would have to manage her life at St. Muirgein’s on her own.)

She did not yet have a sense of who might be an ally in this place. She had taken her mentor’s warning to heart. The Iron Duke had told her that the City was a dangerous place. It would not be wise to take others at face value, to trust that secrets would be kept and weaknesses guarded.

(And she had certainly read enough manga to know that school girls could be very dangerous.)

The princess would have to stand on her own two feet for a while, regardless of how exhausting that was. That meant a great deal of pretending.

Most people don’t want who you are, Demi thought to herself. They want who they imagine you to be.

This was particularly true of princesses. Demi hadn't really become a princess only lately, after all, although she was generally used to it as a part time occupation only.

She studied the stones underfoot and the trees around her as she walked on thoughtfully.

There were ironwork lamps along the path shaped like tall, slender flowers, and the lights in them glowed pale pink and lavender, mint, and blue, even in the morning sunlight. It made everything feel hushed and magical. The sound of chimes came from a long way off.

Demi suspected that they were hung among the trees, and they sang whenever the wind rustled the leaves.

“Vivian is a senior in Sunflower Class. Rosamund and Mallory are seniors in Iris class. Mariah is a junior in Moon Class, with us,” explained Monday as they walked along the path. “And of course, Ichigo told you that she’s a junior, and in the Star Class. Each year has three classes of students. In our case, there’s the Sun Class, the Moon Class, and the Star Class. There are roughly ninety students in each year, and so around three hundred and sixty in the upper school.”

Demi smiled nervously. “That's a lot of students,” she observed. She was absolutely unused to being around more than a dozen girls at a time, and even those over a relatively broad range of ages.

Monday laughed easily. “The schools in the Lowercity regularly have two thousand students a year,” she said.

I know, Demi thought to herself, looking up through the trees.

The world was a very big place, and there were many people in it, even if one only counted high school students.

It made her a little nervous to think about. She wasn't used to big crowds of people. The idea that most of the junior class had apparently gathered at the front gate for the pleasure of seeing her was a little unnerving.

Still, it was something that she was going to have to get used to. She was going to be a public figure for the rest of her life. She was going to have to become inured to public scrutiny.

Still, a little at a time. Baby steps were all right for now. She had only just arrived in the City yesterday morning. She had time to get acclimated to things slowly. Of course they'd make a fuss over her at first because she was something new, but then things would settle down and she could find her place. She could learn the names of the girls in her class and hopefully make some friends. That would be a good start. She could worry about learning to manage her public image with time.

And then she didn't worry very much at all about her public image, because they had suddenly come out of the dense wood and into a very romantic park filled with arbors of roses that were blooming even now, in early autumn.

The park was so lovely that it deserved a very proper study, but Demi had no time for it. That was because a very remarkable collection of buildings had come into view at the other end of the park, across a clear, babbling stream.

“Welcome to St. Muirgein’s Above-the-Forest,” Monday said with a smile.

“Did elves build this school?” Demi demanded, her eyes wide.

It certainly seemed like the sort of place that might have been called the last homely house. The architecture was full of long sinuous lines of wood that curved into lovely, abstract shapes. These organic shapes were echoed in glass and metalwork. Everything was curvilinear, delicate, beautiful, languid. The architecture was perfectly art nouveau, and so it very naturally looked as if it had been built by elves. It was so fanciful — full of stained glass and the details of the living world: flowers, leaves, flowing water — that it seemed unreal. It seemed to be a place too beautiful to truly exist, the sort of place that might be ruled by a fairy queen.

And yet, this was a high school for girls.

There were several buildings arranged variously around the park, as well as delicate wooden bridges that evoked the same sense as the rest of the architecture, flowing over the water features like water themselves. The largest building was directly across the park. It rose four stories above the ground, but as it was set on the sloping hillside and was so far back from the outer wall, it had not been visible from the street.

Rising above this building was a narrow tower, and that, indicated Monday, was where they were headed. Demi’s shock at having come upon such a beautiful picture had finally subsided enough for her to close her mouth and stop gaping.

“It certainly seems as if elves built this place,” agreed Monday with a giggle. “Now come along, Mitya. Your astonishment is absolutely adorable, but I have a feeling you’d rather not be caught by the other students just yet. Rosie-rose won't be able to stall them for long.”

“I’m sorry,” Demi said with an awkward laugh. “This really is a remarkable school, isn't it?” she asked, turning around in place as she tried to look at everything at once. “There are so many beautiful parks. I feel like I’m at a botanical garden,” she paused, then clarified, “Built by elves.”

“There are four formal gardens and two orchards on the campus,” Monday agreed, ticking them off on her fingers as they walked. “The rose garden belongs to the seniors,” she said. “The apple orchard belongs to the juniors. The cherry tree promenade belongs to the freshmen, and the sophomores have the water garden. You’re free to visit any of the gardens you like, of course. In addition, the middle school has a hedge maze, and the lower school has a very pretty tulip garden. Each of the classes in the upper school helps with the upkeep and maintenance of their particular gardens, under the supervision of the gardening staff and the garden clubs, of course. Even the very young students get their hands dirty planting flower bulbs. It's one of our enrichment activities. Oh, and the wooded parks belong to everyone.” She paused, then carefully added, “With the exception of the Wanderwood. Only student council members and those on student council business are allowed in there.”

It really was like a fairy land. Demi had been through an enchanted wood and was now on approach to a fairy palace. It was all a little surreal.

“There are two towers on the campus,” Monday added, gesturing toward the main building. “The Air Castle is the domain of the headmistress. The Forest Castle belongs to the student council. You can see it just there,” Monday said, pointing.

Far past the main building was the silhouette of a tower rising high above the trees. It was visible because the ground continued to gently slope downward the deeper into the campus one got, but then it seemed to rise again as it approached a high bounding curtain wall. The Forest Castle appeared to be on a high promontory, so that it rose to overlook even the curtain wall, gazing not only at the school, but at strange vistas beyond. The view from the Forest Castle was surely marvelous, but it seemed distant from the school’s main buildings.

“Its a little ways off, isn't it?” Demi wondered. “Isn't that a bit inconvenient?”

Monday shrugged. “You get used to it,” she said. “The reason it's so far out is because it's at the edge of the school grounds, and at the edge of Asphodel itself. The Forest Castle overlooks the interior of the campus on one side and the Deep Wood on the other side.”

Demi brightened immediately, suddenly acutely interested. “Does it?” she asked. “I’d love to see that. I grew up next to the Deep Wood,” she explained, then paused. “But you knew that already, I’m sure.”

“Of course! Knowing all about my lovely Mitya is just part of my job,” answered Monday pleasantly. “And I’m sure you’ll get the opportunity to see the view from the Forest Castle if you like. After all, you're our wonderful new princess!”

Demi’s mouth flickered in an uncertain smile again, but Monday paid her no mind.

As they crossed one of the humpbacked bridges, Demi leaned over to look in the water, because she thought she had spotted a vivid flash of color.

She had. The stream was alive with beautiful koi fish: maple red, snowy white, black as ink. That made her feel at home, and gave her a sense of connection with her past. There was a great koi pond at Forest Home, and many fish besides in the other water features. Demi was very fond of both koi fish and goldfish, and could recognize and name several patterns and types.

But there was no time to spare for koi fish just as there had been no time to spare for the rose garden. That was all right, she supposed. She would have plenty of time at the school to explore the gardens and feed the koi fish. She would be a student for the next two years, and possibly longer, based on the desires of her father. He had the right to keep her in secondary school until she came of age.

At least this didn't seem like a bad place. Even based on aesthetics alone it was extremely appealing, especially for a bereft girl who was feeling particularly homesick.

Nurture the hungry heart, Demi thought, nurture the soul.

Demi turned to look at Monday who seemed to be enjoying watching Demi enjoy the scenery.

“Jorunn is already here, isn’t she?” she asked, looking over the rolling green of the campus. “And Druid and Foxy? I know today will be busy, but I’d like to see them after class, if possible.”

Monday smiled her cat’s smile and nodded once. “Yes, Mitya, your beloved horses are here along with their trainer. I’m sure we’ll be able to make some time to see them.”

Demi nodded and then Monday gracefully indicated the way before them with a courtly sweep of her arm.

Demi smiled a bit at that in spite of herself and moved on as Monday directed. Monday continued on at her side as she did.

It was relief to know that Jorunn and the horses had arrived safely and settled in. They’d come to the City separately, and now they had become something like a lifeline, a slender thread connecting the past to the present. Now that Mr. Grave had been sent back, Jorunn, Druid, and Foxy were the only piece of home she yet retained. It would feel good to see them, to simply touch Foxy, stroking her face, or to shelter against Druid, enjoying his warmth. She hoped they weren’t too disturbed in this new environment. Foxy had traveled a bit, but Druid had spent his entire life at Forest Home because he had been foaled there.

Well, at least this place feels like a good place, she reflected. Hopefully it’s at least a little bit familiar even though it’s unfamiliar.

This was a school in one forest and above another, after all.