The thing about palaces and castles is that they are big. Akamore castle stood forty-five feet tall and three hundred feet long. We have a total of seven hundred rooms and seventy bathrooms. The halls can be like a maze with matching decor hanging on most of the walls and the same red rug in each hall. The only thing different with the halls, rooms, and bathrooms was the Victorian crown molding. Each hall had its own design and the King’s Hall crown molding had images of crowns and vines engraved on it. The vines would snare around the jeweled crown, entangling it in a web, but never touching it. Some of the vines would have thorns that would never reach the crown, while some had flowers that did reach the crown. I never could tell what kind of flowers it was. I think they were make-believe flowers that some architects made up just so this crown molding could be pretty and so they could get paid more money. But still, the crown molding was beautiful and I could see the hours of work put into it. The dedication behind every small detail would be easy to miss but would be truly appreciated.

The King’s Hall led to the King’s Room which was also called a throne room. It was an office space for the King now. He would still have the golden throne with a soft red cushion he sat upon, but now it sat behind a mahogany desk so he could do his work while he sat. He would have meetings in his office and officials would casually walk around the room with cups of coffee and freshly baked cookies. They would discuss matters of politics or trade. Then they will all take a moment to comment on his desk or throne, “My sir, that mahogany desk is beautiful.” The King would take a moment and look at the officials.

“Thank you, my wife gave it to me.” Everyone would go silent. Remembering the late Queen. Their eyes would dart to the corner of the room where the Queen’s throne once resided but was now replaced with a pot that had a fake tree. 

The King never remarried. He chose not to even though he could. There were plenty of women who wanted to marry him and provide him with more children, but he always refused with a loud huff. It fermented the end of the district of Akamore. It would live on though, with another district, and that district would treasure the fact that they just got the richest district out of the six. It’s what the King prides himself on. He and the rest of the Akamore family made Akamore the wealthiest and strongest district. 

I finally made it to the tall red doors that were left open waiting for my presence. I could already see the King sitting at his desk. He was old now. His hair had gone white and he had a white beard. He was starting to bald, but no one had the heart to tell him. He had the same skin tone as Margo, but now it was more red than cool. He sat at a computer typing away, taking moments to stop and reread his work. His eyes would squint as he leaned forward. His screen reflected brightly in his half-framed square glasses. He would shake his head and grumble something I couldn’t hear before he went back to typing. He didn’t notice my arrival. I walked into the office and bowed.

“My liege, you called for me?” I could hear him come to a slow stop with his typing and I could feel his eyes look at me. He shuffled in his throne and coughed,

“Yes. You can stand, no need to bow,” His voice was cold and worn. It had many years behind it. I obeyed his words and stood up, meeting his eyes. He too had silver eyes like Margo’s, but his were darker while her’s were so light. Most of the Akamore family had silver eyes. The only one not to was the previous Queen.

“Any word from the Princes,” he asked looking back at his computer.

“They’ll be here in an hour. Princess Margo is almost ready. She was already fitted in her white gown.”

The King didn’t move, he sat there frozen, deep in thought he turned his head to me slightly still not making eye contact with me. “Good,” he started to tap away on his keyboard again. “All three of those Princes are going to want her hand.” He paused and his typing stopped, “Everyone wants a piece of Akamore. I want you to see to it that she– Margo finds the right one. One that truly loves her and who she can love. One that isn’t a fool.” He looked over at me from the corner of his eye.

“Make sure Margo truly falls in love,” he added before returning to work. This was the purpose of this all. Have Margo fall in love. He looked at me with a smile and stood from his chair.  “That’s an order. She doesn’t need to be in a loveless marriage. We both know she doesn’t deserve that.” We both yearned for the same thing at that moment. Margo’s happiness. He made his way to me, his steps soft.

“Yes. I understand," I responded with a firm nod. He smiled and placed a hand on my shoulder. He squeezed it gently. 

“Good. You may leave. And good luck.”

Meetings with the King never lasted long. He liked to get to the point quickly. I would be told he was a very busy man and he shouldn’t have to trifle with his staff. He didn’t have time. However, he would spend the rare occasion with Margo. Margo would be in her room lying in her bed telling me that she wanted to see her father. She craved his attention, and often when asked he would provide it. Even if it was only for five minutes. He would come into her room with a bowl of ice cream. I would whisper to him that Margo loved cookie dough ice cream with extra whipped cream and chocolate syrup. He would come with two spoons and a bowl for them to share. They often sat in silence on her bed as they ate the ice cream. But that silence often filled the void that Margo needed. Temporarily at least. There would be the occasion when the King couldn’t make it, an important meeting or guest visiting.  He wouldn’t have the time for their five precious minutes and Margo would be down the rest of the day. She often took a nap during those times. So I would sneak into the kitchen to make the ice cream she so loved and leave it by her door. 

When I arrived back to Margo’s side she was sitting on her bed unmasked. Her room was huge. One of the biggest rooms in the palace and was filled with gifts from the people, staff, and her father. While he couldn’t spend much time with her, he did like to spend lavishly on her. She had a collection of stuffed bears in the right corner of her room and bouquets of flowers on the left. They were an arrangement of different colors from brown to blue to yellow but never red. Her bed was always made with white bed sheets and too many pillows for one person. Her eyes slowly made their way to me and she smiled. “Welcome back,” she stood quickly and made her way to the window. Despite the size of the room it only had one window that had a sitting area in front of it. She stared at the window, not daring to take a seat. The camera crew finished setting up and the sky was starting to turn into a dusky pink sunset. It was perfect for the cameras. 

I could almost hear Margo’s smile as she sat down, her eyes still staring out the window. “You did a marvelous job. They’re very pretty.” I walked towards her and stared out at the flowers she spoke about. She was right. The flowers were pretty. A part of me hoped they would always stay that way. Margo let out a sigh and turned from the window. The smile was now gone and her eyes filled with worry. “You can’t tell anyone,” she whispered as she looked up at me. I nodded my head and grabbed her hand. Her hand was warm, sweaty, and I could feel her grip tighten as she held my hand. Her fingers rubbed the back of my hand. She could barely look at me, her eyes refused to. I could see her barely lick her lips and her hard blinks that were an attempt to hold back her tears.

“You know that I won’t. Secrets die with me,” I responded.

“I. I am. I.” She paused and looked away, “What if none of them like me,” her voice quivered.

I shook my head. Who wouldn’t like Margo? Margo was amazing and beautiful, the kind of beauty words couldn’t describe. She was kind too. Everyone smiled when she entered a room, so if the Princes didn’t like her then it didn’t matter. Someone better than them would come along. 

“If they didn’t like you they wouldn’t be here. Any of them would be lucky to have you,” I answered.  She smiled, still holding my hands. She turned to look back out the window and examined the world outside. She bit down softly on her lips deciding what she was going to say next.  She took a deep breath and turned to me. Her eyes met mine and did not swagger or sway. 

“Thanks, but. I’m worried that I might not like any of them. I don’t want to fall in love with any of them,” she whispered as quietly as she could, her voice still no longer having a quiver to it.

The King’s words echoed in my mind. Make sure she falls in love. 

Her eyes stayed glued to mine and I swallowed so the lump in my throat would go away. It stayed though, still pestering me reminding me that not all problems are easy to solve. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll be here to help. I promise.”

She forced a smile at my response and her grip only tightened.