Given or Earned | ONC2021

2) Meeting the Prince

As the car stopped, I got out and looked up to see a huge castle with stone walls and a lot of windows. Looking this small beside the construction, I had the remind myself to keep my mouth closed and not to stare at it for a long time. Looking at my grandma to see what she was doing, I saw no one next to the car in the place where she had to be.

"Come on." I hear her say and see that she was already at the gate.

"Coming." I say, starting to run towards her.

As the large gate of the castle was opened by two servants, I saw an amazingly long lobby with a lot of small tables on which there were vases with different kinds of flowers, a long red and blue carpet and some portraits of people who I assumed were the ascendants of the current Royal family. The ceiling was also covered in a beige colour with some chandeliers hanging.

Walking forward and turning right just before the end of the lobby, we arrive once again before a large door.

"The Jones family." a servant says through the door.

"Let them in." I hear a voice saying.

As the servant opens the door, I see three people standing in the middle of the room that is also very large, just as the rest of the castle I've seen. It appears to be a living room, with some sofas and couches on one side, while at the other, a huge bookcase occupies the whole wall. In the middle, behind these people, I see a small table. I recognise these people as the ones from the last portrait I saw in the lobby.

Focusing now on the people I see that they are two women and a boy. The older woman is wearing a dark blue dress with long sleeves, a small hat on her head and a beautiful diamond necklace. She also has two rings on her fingers and a bracelet on her left hand. The white high heels make her look very elegant and royal. My grandma tells me that she is the former Queen, to which I slightly bend my head and my knees to greet her. The other woman is wearing a beautiful red dress with long sleeves, a crown on her head and a beautiful shiny necklace completes the dress. She has a ring on her fingers as well and the white high-heels makes her look marvelously young. She is apparently the Queen at the moment, to which I bow to her as well. The good-looking boy besides them is wearing a dark blue suit and some nicely-polished shoes. As soon as I find out that he is the Prince, I bow to him as well.

"How are you my dear Margaret?" my grandma asks the former Queen as we all sit down on the sofas.

"I am doing pretty well considering my age. What about you Barbara?" she asks my grandma.

"Doing fine, as well. I am very glad that I got to meet my granddaughter, Eileen, and that we will live together but I am sad about the reason it got to this. Anyway, how is your son, the King?"

"Oh, he is doing really great." answers the Queen. "My husband is away with business: keeping peace with our allies and trying to get others to join us."

"Oh, I see. It's just a pity we didn't get to see him today, but we will have the opportunity another time. Shouldn't we let the children get to know each other?"

"Yes, we should." said the Queen, gesticulating to me to go to the next room with Arnold.

Heading towards that door, from behind the Prince, I see how the door opens as if it was automatic. Getting through another lobby, we finally enter another room which looks like a ballroom. It has a chandelier in the middle of the room that looks so close to the floor that it almost seems like you could touch it if you're under it. The paintings on the walls and ceiling were very pretty. There were also some chairs on which the light shown, getting in through the big windows on the walls.

"Can I sit down?" I ask Arnold showing the chair.

"Yes." he says.

"So, how is it being a Prince? Do you like it?" I ask.