Under the Roses

Chapter 5

"Rise and shine, Princess Adelaine!" Next thing I knew, light was searing through my eyelids, and I nearly fell off the bed.

"Nico! What gives?" I harshly rubbed my eyes so I could glare at him. But he was busy scurrying around the room, parting the curtains to let every ounce of the morning sun stream into my eyes.

"I already let you sleep in an extra ten minutes, and Giles will never let you hear the end of it if you show up late on the first day." His words made me shoot up in the bed and throw the covers off. A glance at the watch on my side table told me I had twenty minutes to meet the chamberlain in his office.

"Ugh fine, you're right." He grinned at my mumbled statement, standing at the doorway while I stopped midway to the closet, trying to recall what order to prepare myself in. Dress, face, hair, shoes, mental stability, got it.

I almost tripped over my own feet as I dashed about the humongous room. Not bothering to try to mess with the intricate buttons that my flailing fingers surely could not manage, I opted for a brown skirt that almost hit my knees and a plain top in a shade of blue that had caught my eye because it had reminded me of robin's eggs from springtime.

"Eight minutes," Nico warned as I emerged from the bathroom after washing my face and changing. Nodding to show I'd heard, I hovered over the vanity table, anxiously trying to remember which container held what.

It was only my first real morning and I was having a breakdown just trying to locate the concealer. Oh, the next few days were going to be grand.

"Okay I'm ready, I'm ready." Though slightly out of breath, I'd pulled myself together. Not daring to risk limping around for the rest of the week, I'd located a pair of cream sandals, and I had to settle for running a brush through my hair twice before tossing it back onto the table. Oh well, maybe I'll just throw it up in a ponytail so no one can see all the tangles.

"For starters, I don't understand why you made me wake up at seven thirty when breakfast doesn't start until nine." I sat across from Giles in his study, his massive oak desk separating us. He chuckled lightly, a faint smile on his lips.

"Consider this a pre-evaluation, Miss Adelaine. I want to see how much you know of what is needed of you, as well as your typical behavior so we can know which areas are in need of improvement." I raised an eyebrow.

"So you're going to watch me . . . eat?" A raise and drop of his shoulders.

"Among other things." His smirk widened into a genuine smile. "You've improved on your sighs. And my decision is still definite, so you needn't worry about impressing me so much. Your back surely must hurt." Well then. My straightened posture slackened a little, and he moved on.

"I'd assumed you would like to know what was going to be taking place before I began assessing your actions." Slowly, I nodded.

"Well, thank you for the advanced notice, then. I suppose I should ask if there's anything just totally against all palace protocol that I might have done yesterday without knowing."

"Not necessarily, but I would refrain from walking around the palace without shoes." I almost rolled my eyes. From the way everyone took note of it, you would think this place was a hospital.

"I'll keep that in mind."

"Please do. It really does set off some of the officials." He cleared his throat, shifting in his seat. "Now then, Miss Adelaine. Let's begin."

He had me read aloud some passages from various textbooks about intricate politics and tell him what they meant. It felt strange to be on the other side of the desk, but I did fairly well, considering that I hadn't touched such a thick textbook in a couple years. After some questions testing my knowledge of how to handle metaphorical issues, he finally leaned back in his chair.