The wall swung open in the Empress's chamber with barely a whisper. Devrim peeked out his head with a mischievous grin. "Are you ready?" He asked. Aurora had been awaiting his gentle knock on the wall for what seemed like an eternity. She was clad in old play clothes that Nanny had made for her the year before. They were well-worn and comfortable. Anna had thought it strange when the princess had requested the clothes from her old room, but the lady had decided not to dwell on the mystery. It was not worth her position to question her mistress's quirks. Ducking her head into the passageway, Aurora winked at her co-conspirator.

"Let's go!"

The pair were careful to not close the passage until they found the hidden latch that would open it from the inside. "That's what I was looking for last night," Devrim said sheepishly. "I thought I was back at my own room. We should probably mark our way as we go." The boy pulled out a piece of chalk and marked the girl's passage with a large 'EA'. "For Empress Aurora," he told her.

"Very original…" the girl responded sarcastically. "How did you get here without a torch?" There was very little light in the hidden hallway, and there would be even less when they pulled close the door.

"Do you trust me?" Devrim asked with a twinkle in his eye. Before she could answer, he pulled the door to her room shut. Aurora panicked for a moment, closing her eyes to shut out the darkness. She was terrified of the dark and the loneliness it could bring. "Open your eyes, Aurora. It's amazing!" Slowly the girl complied. What she saw was indeed impressive. The walls themselves seemed to glow a soft green. They shimmered a bit like stars, with bright flickers gleaming and then fading from view. Although it couldn't compare to the light of day, it was certainly enough to illuminate the passage for easy travel.

"Wow! How is this even possible?" Aurora could not contain her wonder. It turns out her companion had been equally mystified the night before.

"I don't know," he admitted. "Perhaps this is special luminescent stone? All I know is that it lines all the tunnels I have seen."

"Show me everything you've found!"

Devrim bowed and held out his hand. "Right this way, Your Highness!"

The palace itself was made of exceptionally thick stone walls. It seemed now that those walls were built to hide a secret. The passageways went around every room. In their searching that evening, they found no other doors except the two they had used to enter. There were even internal stairs between floors. It was likely that the first emperor who had built this palace enjoyed being able to spy on his subordinates. Every room had a portion of the wall that was thinner, where those inside the passage could see and hear what was going on within the room, without being observed.

They passed by Aurora's former room. It was unoccupied, but many of her old things were still strewn about her room. The girl wondered if her parents had ever come to watch her. She decided that it was unlikely. They probably didn't know about this place. 'It's just as well,' Aurora realized. 'My mother would have found whole new ways to torture me.'

The pair stopped to view the throne room. Servants were already beginning preparations for the coronation the following week. The two watched through the portion of the wall, amazed that it seemed no one could see them. For them it was like looking through a crystal pane of glass. "Do you think they can hear us?" The girl whispered.

Devrim thought for a moment. "Do you want to find out for sure?"

"What did you have in mind?" Aurora was intrigued.

"Well, there are four servants in the room. If we speak and they hear us, they will just blame each other." He waited for her to confirm his plan. When she nodded, his voice rose to a yell, "Hey you! Yeah, you with the big nose!" No one reacted, which only emboldened the childish behavior.

"Your pants are on fire!" Aurora called out toward the throne room. Her delight at sharing the mischief with her friend was obvious.

"It surprises me that such a well-bred lady as yourself is ok with spying like this," Devrim teased.

"Are you kidding? I've spent most of my life tiptoeing and sneaking around. It was safer that way. A wall of separation just makes the sneaking easier."

Devrim was beginning to realize just how difficult the princess's life in the palace must have been, and it made him that much more determined to make her smile. Since none of the servants had even glanced their way, he screamed, "LOOK A SNAKE!"

It took a moment for Aurora to realize he was joking, but when she did, she burst out into peels of laughter. The servants, on the other hand, kept busy at their tasks. "It's crawling up your leg! Watch out!" The princess added to the tale.

"It's on your head! It's a viper!" Devrim said. Both children were laughing so hard their sides hurt.

Cafer entered the throne room. "Where's the snake?" The chief looked calm, but his eyes were worried.

The servants looked at each other, confused. "Chief?" One of them finally asked.

"I heard there was a snake." Cafer's eyes searched the ground frantically.

"I'm sorry, Chief. I do not know anything about a snake." The servant bowed low so as not to incur the powerful man's wrath. Cafer's eyes narrowed as he walked the edges of the large throne room, looking intently at each portion of the wall as he passed. When he got to where Devrim and Aurora were, they ducked below the viewing widow and lay flat on the floor. The children held their breath. After what seemed like an eternity, Cafer's footsteps receded from the wall.

"It's late. I must be hearing things. I will head to bed." Cafer left the throne room and headed toward the lower section of the palace where the Council lived. The children could not have been more relieved.

Devrim lifted his head. "Why could Cafer hear us when the others couldn't?" he whispered.

Aurora's dark eyes were wide with fear. "I don't know and right now I don't care. Let's get out of here!"