Chapter 6: Of Course. It's SO Obvious.
When I got back to my room, I discovered that my little troop were extremely fast workers. The project was finished by lunchtime, which I delayed getting to as I basked in my new surroundings.
The walls were now papered a deep purple, with black stripes dotted with red roses. The gaudy furniture had been replaced with pieces made of a deep cherry wood, and the carpet was now plush and black. The bed now bore cherry wood posts, adorned with a canopy of purple velvet. The thick blanket was also velvet, and the bed was adorned with cushions and pillows colored red and decorated with black lace.
The pink fixtures had been replaced with silver sconces, the curving candleholders housing three candles each. The vanity now had a mirror with an elegant silver frame; I surveyed myself in it, reflected in my new surroundings, and thought I never looked more at home.
In fact, I felt at home. So much so that I didn't spend much time looking for a way to escape over the next few days. Instead I read more on Darkland history, befriended more guards and kitchen crew, and played with Junior and the koopalings.
And then Junior said something to me that made me question my decision to agree to being his nursemaid. Not that I'd been given much choice in the matter, but...
We were in the courtyard (Junior was still trying to coax me into petting the chain chomps) when Junior suddenly hugged me around the waist and let out a sigh. A very happy sigh.
"I'm so glad you're here, Rosie," he said. "It gets lonely when Dad is gone, and the others don't play with me like you do."
Guilt started to rise inside me as I put my arms around him. "What happened to your mother?" I asked softly.
"Never had a mama," he said sadly. "But that's okay," he added, brightening. "I have you now, and you're as nice as a mama."
I swallowed with difficulty, my heart paining me a little. I might feel out of place at home, but I still had two parents who loved me. Junior only had one parent, who was gone a lot. And here I was, basically humoring him until I found a way to leave. I positively loathed myself as I went to bed that night.
And then, when I awoke the next morning, it hit me. It was so obvious, yet still so scary an idea at first I was afraid to think it. But then the question crept into my mind; why not? Why couldn't I stay here, and continue the job I enjoyed, and be with the people who had become my friends? I hadn't any obligations at home, and my parents, who had always been sad that I would never marry since there were no more princes nearby that they knew of, would no doubt be happy to hear that I actually had a position somewhere.
Granted, they might not be pleased that it was so mundane, so I decided not to mention what it was in the letter I got up to write. I vaguely explained that my travels had led me to Darkland, where I had taken a position under the guidance of the royal family. I told my parents that I had decided to stay for now, citing that I thought it would behoove our kingdom to learn more about this mysterious land. I knew that would impress my father; nurturing positive relations with other kingdoms was always at the top of his to do list.
I said that I was comfortable and well cared for, then signed off with my love. My guard (who I noticed had taken to guarding me personally, instead of guarding me from getting into mischief) introduced me to a paratroopa, who promised to see that my letter was delivered.
I knew my parents would be surprised, but I didn't see them calling me home. If I could push the idea that I was acting as a mediator between our two kingdoms, they would probably leave me here indefinitely. Which was fine by me.
Pleased with myself, I went looking for my charge. "Hey, Jr B," I greeted cheerfully when I found him in his room. I waded through the pile of toys on the floor, which were being ejected from Junior's toy box. Junior himself was half inside the box, his feet sticking up in the air as he tossed toys over his shoulder.
"Did you lose something?" I asked, after dodging a wooden train.
With a huff, Junior jumped down. "Yeah," he said crossly, "my favorite ball. I can't find it anywhere."
"Well, where did you have it last?" I asked logically.
Junior scrunched up his nose and thought for a moment. "Oh - I remember. I was in Dad's room."
I felt a faint twinge of dread. "I see. Are you-"
"I've got things to do," said Junior as he scurried out the door. "You can go get it for me, right? Thanks!"
He ran off, and I, with a sigh of resignation, started for the king's bedchamber. I hoped that he was asleep, or better yet absent, but had no luck on either count; when I peeked in, he was sitting at his desk, hurriedly writing something amidst mounds of papers. He was also muttering to himself - what else was new? - and he occasionally balled up and threw aside a paper.
He looked awfully busy, and those papers were stacked pretty high, so it occurred to me that I could probably tiptoe in and out without being noticed. If not, well...I had already survived having my hair set on fire once.
Amidst a jumble of papers being tossed to the floor, I crept past the large door and across the carpet, glad I wore soft slippers instead of hard, noisy shoes. Bowser continued to grumble, oblivious of me, and I hunched down and scanned the floor for any sign of that darned ball.
I didn't see anything in the open, so I crept around and peered behind and under things. More grumbling, more paper crumpling. I got down on all fours and peered under the enormous dresser - no luck. And what did he need a dresser for when he never wore clothes?
I was about to straighten up when something shiny caught my eye. Something round, with stripes and stars decorating it. I would have been happy...except it was under the king's bed.
I glanced at him, but he was busy scribbling furiously. He looked so absorbed, I didn't think he would notice me if I went right up to him and said 'hi'. I crawled forward, scooted under the gigantic bed and grappled for the ball. It rolled away from my fingers; sighing, I crawled all the way under the bed to where the ball had rolled against the wall and picked the stubborn thing up.
Behind me, I heard a loud scrape, like a chair being shoved back. Footsteps shook the room; good. If he was leaving, I would wait until he was gone, then escape safely. I held still and quiet - and then a tremendous bang directly above my head nearly made me break my record of not shrieking when I was surprised.
I flattened myself on the floor and held my breath, but everything had turned silent. I waited, the only sound the rapid beating of my heart, before slowly rolling out from under the bed. The room looked empty, and I stood, relieved - and made a strange hiccupping sound as my breath caught in my throat.
The thunderous bang had been the king leaping into bed. He lay sprawled out on top of the covers, one arm draped across his eyes. I stood staring, aghast, my breath held as I waited for him to notice me and throw me out - literally.
He didn't. He was already starting to snore, his massive chest rising and falling with his deep, rhythmic breaths. I let my own out slowly as my heart returned to a normal pace. Bowser snored louder, mouth dropping open. I made a face. He was so strange...yet I kind of liked the color of his hair.
Flushing at the odd turn in my own thoughts, I scurried out of the room. Junior was still off looking for mischief, so I put the ball on his toy box and left for the library. For a few quiet hours I leafed through books listing Darkland's resources. The more I learned about it, the more I was starting to think my home kingdom really could benefit from an alliance, or at least a trading relationship. Darkland's soil was packed with exotic minerals not native to the secluded tri-kingdoms. I would have to mention this in a future letter.
A response came to my first letter about a week later. My parents expressed surprise but not displeasure over this unexpected turn of events. They also informed me of something that had transpired at home in my absence; the kingly father of the prince my eldest sister was to marry had suddenly fallen ill. He was not expected to live much longer, and as a result the wedding had taken place a few days before my letter arrived.
I was a little saddened by this news; as different as we were, I loved my sister and had planned to return home for the wedding. My sister included a note expressing her sincerest apologies and regrets, but the wedding had been so abrupt, few on the original guest list had been able to attend.
My father expressed concern for me; Darkland was a dangerous place, after all. But he added that if anyone in the tri-kingdoms could successfully cultivate a friendship between our two peoples, it was me. Such praise made my heart both soar and ache. As I folded the letter, I knew I would have to visit my homeland soon. I didn't know when I would be able to make the trip, but I definitely wanted to see my family again.
"There you are," said Junior as he suddenly invited himself into my room. "Come on, you gotta be in our new band."
"Band?" I echoed dumbly as he grabbed my hand and dragged me away, bubbling with youthful enthusiasm.
"Uh huh! We're going to be the best musicians ever!"
I hid a smile; he had pronounced it 'moo-si-cans'.
He dragged me to a large room, one with - I was surprised to see - a wooden floor. A ballroom-slash-music room, I quickly realized, with stages for performing and dozens of instruments. I was very fond of music and noted, pleased, that there was a large grand piano off to the side. It was ignored as the koopalings selected their choices from the other instruments the only way they knew how - via fighting over them.
Junior was on cloud nine over being included in something his older siblings were doing, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to battle Ludwig with everything he had for the drum set. Morton and Iggy were making a ruckus over a set of trumpets, Larry and Lemmy were wrestling for a guitar, while Roy and Wendy were arguing over who should sing lead.
"One of you could harmonize," I suggested.
Roy shot me a look. "To her? No way! I sing lead or not at all."
"I think that's a good idea," Wendy spat as he belted out a few notes.
After listening to the two of them try to out-sing each other for a few minutes, I personally thought that Roy had the better voice of the two, but in the end he gave in to his sister's impressive whines and begrudgingly took up a harmonica. Nearby, Ludwig had won the battle over the drums, so Junior, pouting, settled for a tuba. Morton and Iggy had figured out that there were two trumpets, and Larry had won the wrestling match for the guitar. Lemmy looked pleased to have found a set of symbols. I quietly picked up a tambourine.
For the next hour or so, we made more noise than actual music, while Wendy screeched like a wet cat, but nobody really cared. I didn't either; it was fun to let loose and make a racket for the sake of making a racket. Only someone, it seemed, didn't appreciate a racket when he was busy scheming.
"What's all this noise?" Bowser roared, after all but smashing the door down.
Iggy, Lemmy and Larry dropped their instruments with frightened squeaks, but the rest of them were unfazed. "It's not noise," Ludwig protested as he continued to bang mercilessly on the drums. "It's the best music in all Darkland."
I decided now was a good time to discard my tambourine and tiptoe to a safe corner of the room. Ludwig continued to drum, until the hefty weight of his father's stare finally made him look up. He locked gazes with those dark eyes, blazing and brilliant as orbs of fire, and flashed a sheepish grin.
Said grin didn't halt the shredding of his drums any. Ludwig wisely took off, followed closely by the others. Finding myself alone, I drifted over to the piano and ran my hand over its glossy surface. The wood was a rich black with a burgundy undertone, and the keys were a brilliant white. It didn't look like it had ever been touched, though the maids kept it free from dust.
I sat down and slowly moved my fingers across the keys, quietly drawing out the mellow melody of one of the many songs I knew by heart. Being a princess meant being expected to be a master of at least one musical instrument, and I was proud to have mastered the piano at a young age.
Eyes closed, I continued to play, my fingers almost feeling like they drifted at their own accord. Then I heard a loud snort. I stopped and opened my eyes.
Bowser was standing next to the piano, watching me. I felt flustered and a little embarrassed; I thought he had left with the others, leaving my little performance unobserved.
"What was that?" he demanded, and not politely.
"Um...Toadofsky's suite #4 in D minor?"
He snorted again. "Talk about boring. Can't you play anything with a little bounce to it?"
Oh, I bounced all right. After carefully closing the piano lid, I hopped off the stool and breezed out of the room. What gave him the right to be so rude? I mean, besides being King. Not that I thought it mattered; my father was a king, and I don't think he knew how to be rude.
In my short time in Darkland I had come to like a lot of things, but King Bowser wasn't one of them.