A/N:
Twilight and its characters are owned by Stephanie Meyer.
Chapter 2. – Princess Renesmee
I woke up that Monday morning and did my weekly physical with Grampy. He would have made an amazing pediatrician. He always made my weekly physicals fun and entertaining. With nine adults constantly trying to play with me, finding alone time with any one person other than mom, dad, or Jacob was difficult. My physicals were my solo time with Grampy.
"Stand up tall, Ness, like a giraffe!" So I did. He took my height measurement and continued doing his usual measuring routine. His cold touch never bothered me the slightest bit. It felt normal to me.
"Now, hold your arms out straight and strong." He'd always do this last, because he'd give me a big tickle in my under arms that would send me rolling in the floor with laughter.
"Well Ness, it looks like you're four years old today!" Grampy exclaimed.
He could probably eye me and tell my exact measurements, but we both enjoyed this alone time together. It was one of the few times where we could bond and talk. We conversed mostly about my latest obsessions, upcoming events, or things I was learning with Alice. When I felt inquisitive or didn't have much to say, I would ask him about something medical, or about his job.
I had a feeling it was getting close to the grand reveal of my playroom, because when I returned to my bedroom from my weekly physical, the crown that Pop Charlie had given me was missing. I panicked, thinking the worst – it got broken while someone was putting something away, or one of the boys was rough housing and crushed it. I immediately ran to the first person I could find, hoping everything was okay.
"Nan, have you seen my crown from Pop??" I asked, my voice was rushed and very stressed.
"Yes honey, I should have told you earlier. I took it in to town this morning to have it cleaned and polished. You wear it practically every day, and the crystals were starting to get a bit cloudy from the regular use. I'm picking it up this afternoon, so you'll have it back soon." Nan was never a good liar, but I knew she wouldn't lie to me if something were truly wrong with my prized possession. I completely trusted her reason for my AWOL crown.
Mom retrieved me from my bedroom when I woke from my nap that afternoon. I'd swear she was glowing, but I knew better than that. She carried me on her narrow hip downstairs to the main level of the mansion. When mom carried me it was like being on a moving sidewalk, I knew I was moving but I never felt jostled. Her movements were so graceful.
"Princess Renesmee, your new palace is finished. Would you like to see it?" my mom whispered in her gentile, charming voice. Her eyes lit with excitement.
"REALLY?!" was all I could manage to spit out. My eyes were as big as apricots and my jaw hung open. My cheeks became rosy and I was gleaming with elation. I had been waiting for this day for what seemed like a year.
We walked at a human pace and she stood me up in front of the lilac dupioni silk curtain that had been blocking the view into my future playroom. We stood there for a moment until everything was absolutely silent behind the beautiful curtain.
Mom held out a remote the size of a credit card and pressed a button. The curtains were slowly drawn to the side and my dream stood in front of me, a dream come true. It was more marvelous than I could ever imagine. I couldn't move. I stood motionless in front of the entryway and absorbed everything in front of me.
The first thing I noticed directly across the room from where I stood was the case filled with jewels and crowns. My crown from Pop Charlie was sitting right on the top in the center, as it was my most precious piece. It was surrounded by some of my old favorites and many new jewels – some looked new, others looked to be antique, some even ancient.
My eyes scaled the entire room and I took it all in. The space looked like a modern day enchanted castle. The walls were a pale shade of pink, my favorite color. The light reflected off them in a way that provided a very subtle glisten, almost like my skin in the bright sun but a bit more sparkly.
I noticed the grand staircase and my eyes traveled upward. At the top, I could see what was likely a bed surrounded by lilac gossamer curtains and pale ivory bedroom furniture that matched the theme of the room. I could see a good bit of the bedroom as there was railing instead of a wall that overlooked the rest of the room below, like a loft but much larger. I could see sconces with glowing candles and fresh flowers on the bedside table.
Mom hit another button on her little remote. Across from the bedroom, to my right, two stories of fabric panels opened up, revealing window after window that domed slightly outward like the exterior of a castle. I was taken aback by the radiance of the sun shining in through the numerous towering windows. My mom was sparkling a bit, something that I loved to admire.
That's when I noticed the French doors. I wasn't ready to move just yet, I was still enthralled, taking in everything that was in front of me. I just couldn't get past the remarkable detail and enormity of the room. The French doors could wait a few more moments.
The living area furniture was gorgeous, custom made no doubt. I noticed some of the fabrics we had picked out during our travels. The sofa and love seat were the usual contemporary style, but the fabrics on them made them exceptionally fantastic. The upholstery was two shades of thick lilac velvet and the pillows coordinated perfectly in varying shades of purple and pink, many with sparkly embellishments and fringes.
Fresh flowers were everywhere, on every surface. The entire room smelled like stargazer lilies, one of my many favorites.
After a couple of seconds of basking in the room's beauty, I started to walk in. As soon as I took one step forward, my entire family – with the exception of my mother and I – came walking down the massive staircase dressed in a wide array of costumes. Dad was wearing his usual king attire. Nan and Grampy were dressed like ancient Egyptian pharaohs. Alice and Jasper glided down the staircase wearing attire akin to Arabian royalty. Rosalie and Emmett were next, dressed up as the Cowardly Lion and Glinda the good witch from Wizard of Oz. Rosalie's costume was particularly astonishing, it was a perfect reproduction of the original from the film, puffy sleeves and a skirt the size of Texas. Even the crown looked to be exactly the same. Rosalie wore it much better than Billie Burke had in the film, of course.
Finally, Jacob and mom came out dressed as Little Red Riding Hood and the big bad wolf. Jacob has never been a big fan of dressing in costumes. I wasn't even sure how mom managed to creep by me, get dressed, and get all the way upstairs without my noticing. Surely I would have seen her go up the stairs as I watched everyone else walk down.
My family greeted me warmly. They all followed closely behind me as I wandered around my new favorite place in the world. The first place I went was the French doors to my right. I flung them open quickly and walked out onto an immaculate iron and stone balcony with soft fabric flowing from above and opening on the sides. Gold details were painted on the iron scrolls along the pickets and above between the posts. Pastel flowers and ivy were everywhere, even on the trellis over head. The balcony smelled almost as amazing as the playroom.
It was the size of a small bedroom with four plush chaise lounge chairs similar to that of the inside living area. The chairs were pink and purple, matching the inside, but the fabric was more durable. There was a perfect view of the garden, the outdoor living area, and the open area of our property which was mostly wooded, for obvious reasons.
Seeing a perfect sunset would require either being very high or clearing the property, neither of which were an option. The room did face west, but we weren't high enough off the ground to get a good view of the sunset. That was fine, though; mom and dad's room was on the tippy top floor, the only room on the small fourth floor. Their balcony provided the perfect view for watching sunsets, and their chaise loungers were a great place for an afternoon nap – on the rare occasion I was allowed up there. Apparently my nap time was their only alone time and they liked to relax in their room.
Once back inside, I headed for the staircase. Mom held my hand and walked with me, brushing the back of my hand with her thumb. As we reached the top, she pulled out her little magical remote. In the push of a button, the curtains on the windows closed and the massive sparkling crystal chandelier on the ceiling turned off. Until then, I hadn't noticed it or that the ceiling was painted with an elaborate cloudscape. The cloudscape quickly turned to a very dark navy blue and lit up with tiny twinkling lights.
I walked into the bedroom area and did that jaw drop thing again. I was frozen. My bed looked like it was on loan from a fairytale. I admired the scene that was carved into the headboard, running my fingers along the fine details.
"I carved the details in the furniture, Nessie," Jacob said, standing back in the crowd that followed us up the stairs. Emmett often made fun of him, calling him a wood-whittler, but I always found his creations remarkable.
I looked closer and noticed that the wood on the headboard was carved into a picturesque mural of one of my favorite places in the world – First Beach. I particularly loved cliff diving, it was one of my favorite things to do with Jacob when we lived in Forks. The carving was a perfect reproduction of the scene. Driftwood, pretty pebbles, caps on the waves, nearby trees, a whale hovering the surface out in the distance; it was all there. Jacob was more talented than I originally thought.
The furniture in the room matched the ivory bed, though it was the only piece with anything picturesque carved into it. The rest of the furniture had traditional scrolls and posts. Intricate flower groupings adorned the peak of the mirror on the dresser as well as the top drawers of the bedside tables, chest, and the dresser.
On the wall side of the bed was a chair large enough for two adults to sit close to each other. It matched the furniture in the playroom – lilac velvet. The cushions were fluffy, just how I liked. A perfect place for reading books before bed.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the top of a different staircase and quickly remembered earlier that when I was entering, on my left under the bedroom area was a closed curtain that matched the entry curtain. After pausing for a few more seconds to take in my new bedroom, I headed for the iron spiral staircase.
I heard the push of another button and the rustling of fabric coming from below as I walked down the stairs. As soon as light peeked through the curtains, I realized that I was standing in more than a closet. It was the most incredible dressing room one could ever fathom.
I thought my hoard of dress-up goodies was respectable before, but I was wrong. I saw all of my old favorites hanging on the racks, along with numerous new dresses in several sizes. I had dresses and clothing from all of my favorite eras, and I even suspected one particular dress was a Civil War era original.
The chandelier over head beamed tiny rainbows on the walls of my dressing room. This space was larger than my old bedroom! Every direction I looked, there was something sparkly. My jaw dropped slightly when I noticed the pedestal and mirrors in the corner that resembled something out of a couture gown shop. And the shoe rack, rows and rows of shoes. I didn't fail to notice what appeared to be slippers made of glass. I thought the bedroom was the best part of all… but I quickly decided that the dressing room was unsurpassed.
I felt overwhelmed. I took a seat in the chaise lounge that was in the center of my dressing room. My family wandered around the playroom and let me have a moment to let it all sink in. Jacob phased back into his human self and the guys all changed into regular clothes. Rosalie, Alice, Nan, and mom remained in their costumes. What female doesn't love to play dress up?
After a minute of relaxing and staring at my colossal dressing room, I decided on what I wanted to do. I had each family member show me what their part was and showed them just how grateful I was. I knew they would want to do this, its human nature to want to take credit for your masterful work. Though no one here was fully human, we all had human feelings.
I had failed to see the walk-in closet full of stage props for all of my favorite stories and nursery rhymes. That explained the big open area and stage off to the side. Props ranging from picnic necessities, a throne, microphones, large stuffed animals, and so on. I had everything I needed to let my imagination soar. The room was complete and perfect, even more than I had ever imagined possible.
When we were finished examining every impeccable detail of my magnificent room, they had another surprise in store for me. Rosalie pushed a tea cart into my playroom. The cake it held was gorgeous. Two tiers, and it matched my new room – Lilac and pink gum-paste flowers covering a pale green backdrop, with a small bouquet of fresh stephanotis flowers on the top complete with tiny rhinestones in the centers of each one. I preferred blood, but I was still half human, and all brands of human like cake. We all sat in the living area of my playroom, only Jacob and I eating the cake. Well, I ate… Jacob, he more-less devoured it.
"No sense in wasting perfectly good food, and it's not like any of you are going to eat it," he mumbled between bites. Jacob never felt inclined to learn proper eating etiquette since he usually ate alone, or hunted with us.
I spent the remainder of the afternoon trying on everything in my dressing room and playing dress up with my family.
Mom and dad moved all of my things from my old room. I kept my previous blanket which I was quite fond of. Luckily it matched the new room. It was antique white with simple embroidered lilac flowers scattered about. The bed skirt was the same lilac as the flowers with a sheer organza overlay which provided a nice 'princess' feel. The coordinating pillows were also antique white. It was understated elegance. The blanket was so soft, and the Egyptian cotton sheets were like silk.
The twinkling lights on my ceiling mesmerized me. Good sleep would not be a difficult task in this room.
A/N:
I love reviews! Here's this chapter's photo album: picasaweb dot google dot com/fairytalesfanfic930/Chapter2