THE PALACE OF BEAUTY

Wow." Is the word I say, when I look at the huge building lit up with silver and gold lights.

I hear a sound of click next to me and find that Phoebe is already texting her friends about it. "They're gonna be so freaking jealous." She murmurs.

I see Aunt Claire running at us and tightly hugging Mom. "How was the plane?" She asks Mom.

"Mostly good." She says with a smile.

She picks up Coco and pets her. "I haven't seen you since forever." She hands her to me and then hugs each of us. You guys look tired, we better get you in soon." She points towards the building with her head.

"We're staying here?" Rachel asks her.

Aunt smiles and replies "Well, it would be really stupid to let you stay in any other hotel when your Mom and Aunt own a palace."

Phoebe instantly looks up from her phone and looks at Aunt with her mouth agape, "So, you're telling me that our family owns this huge palace building? Oh my god, we're rich, so rich."

Mom raises her eyebrow at her and asks, "This is what you take from this?"

"What? It's true." Phoebe answers back.

I, however, am still confused. "Wait....how did you....when-" Aunt, seeing me struggling for words, chuckles and says, "I'll explain everything on the way to the entrance. You guys, go ahead, we'll catch up to you." Mom nods and walks ahead with my sisters.

"Why did you send them away?" I ask her.

Her face instantly turns serious and her emerald eyes which a second ago, were gleaming with excitement, now becomes still. "Cause this is a touchy topic." She warns me.

This was going to be about Dad. I just know it. Aunt Claire must've realized that I am the only person out of us who doesn't start crying, feels depressed the whole day or screams at the person who brings up the subject of Dad.

Aunt clears her throat and starts speaking. "About three years ago, I got a call from Selene, telling me about one of Kris's designs. He had told her, that this was going to be the best building created by him. But because of the accident, that couldn't happen."

"She wanted us to bring his design to life, and she asked me to be an investor. I, by this time, had saved a pretty good amount of money and had connections that could make this happen. So, I flew out your dad's friend Matthew to be the head engineer for this project. Do you remember him?"

"Dad's best friend from Oxford?" I confirm.

She nods and continues with the story. "Selene communicated with me and Matt through video call. She, being an interior designer and remembering the conversations she had with Kris about this building told us about how the inside would like." She sighs and tells me, "Carry, I hope you understand that a part of him is in that building. It's like he created it himself."

I sigh and nod. "Well, it does look like something he would've made. It's magnificent."

She hugs me tightly, and says, "We better get catch up to your Mom." We walk to the others and reach the entrance.

I look up and see words written in silver against a golden background-'Palais de Beauté'.

"What does it mean?" Rachel asks Aunt Claire, but before she can answer, Phoebe replies while smirking. "Palace of Beauty"

*

Okay, so the inside looks hardly anything like the outside. While the outside is mainly gold and silver, the interior is dominated by colours-Red, Green, White and Blue. There are different types of carvings on the wall. There are two grand staircases, right in front of me. One is made out of marble with red streaks on them, and the other is painted sea green with dark blue patterns on them.

I hear Phoebe breathe heavily and say, "My new home is amazing."

Mom looks at her and instantly says, "This is not your new home. We're just staying here for twenty days."

Phoebe shrugs and questions, "Why not? This is so much better." Mom shakes her head and Aunt Claire and Rachel laugh silently.

I notice both of them, and realise how similar they look. The same black hair, the emerald eyes, their light complexion.... I sometimes wonder how three sisters can look nothing alike but still match their parents, or aunts in this case.

While I look exactly like my Dad, Phoebe looks like Mom throughout. She has mocha skin, black curly hair and amber eyes like her, which as her friends say make her look 'stunning'.

Aunt Claire leads us to the stairs where I see an ivory statue of a woman standing with a crown on her head. Being a History nerd, I should recognize a famous queen but I don't.

We go up the blue-green stairs and turn right. While climbing, I notice people down moving hurriedly. I turn to Aunt and ask her, "Is this like a hotel situation?"

She nods and says, "Yeah, but also think of it like a tourist attraction."

We reach a door with blue and white carvings on it, and Mom stands in front of a door with red and green carvings on it. Aunt and Mom both open the doors.

The room looks gorgeous. Pretty much following the design of the main hall. "So, whose room is this one?" Phoebe asks Aunt and Mom.

Mom smiles and replies "All of yours."

Phoebe's excitement dies down and she asks, "What?"

Mom nods and says, "We figured that the room is big enough for all of you. There are four beds, three bathrooms and enough space for everybody."

As much as I do not want to stay in a room with Phoebe, Mom does have a point. The room is freaking huge, hell, it's bigger than my room and living room combined. So, I stay quite and simply sit on the bed, Coco jumps up on my lap and purrs loudly. Rachel does the same (quietly sitting, not purring like Coco) and sits next to me.

Phoebe however is totally outraged. "Mom, there are a bajillion rooms in this palace. Why do we need to be in the same one?"

Mom smiles again and answers back, "Because I say so."

Even though Phoebe is not the one who easily backs down, she knows that this is the end of the argument. She angrily walks in and almost steps on Coco. She hisses at Phoebe, showing off her fangs. Phoebe steps away from her and stares down at me.

"I thought I told you to get that thing away from me." She snarls at me.

I stare back at her and say, "Looks like she didn't listen." She tries to come at me but my cat comes in the middle and almost scratches her.

Mom slams the luggage and shouts, "That's enough. Caroline, handle Coco. Phoebe, you say one word to her and you'll spend your days closed up in this room only. Please continue if you want that."

I quickly pick up Coco and Phoebe stomps inside to the other part of the room. Aunt Claire looks worried and turns to Mom. "It's fine if they want different rooms. I can arrange right now...."

Mom shakes her head and sternly says "No. They need to learn how to live with others. Especially Phoebe."

Aunt nods and says, "Ok, goodnight everyone. Please remember to wake up at nine tomorrow. It's inauguration day of the Palace." She walks away and disappears down the hallway.

Mom looks at us. "Goodnight you two. I'll come tomorrow at 8:45 to wake you up." She glances at me and adds, "Please wake up." I, who has a history of not getting up on time, look to another direction.

Mom turns back and holds the handle, but before going, she turns her head and says "Say goodnight to Phoebe from me."

Rachel closes the door and says,"I just want to sleep now." She walks to the chamber next to Phoebe's with a decorative green and brown door, and enters it. I peep a little, and see her lying on the bed and sleeping soundly.

Unlike Rachel, I don't want to sleep at all. First of all, I already slept in the flight and second- I don't want to have weird dreams.

Instead I walk to the chamber opposite to Rachel's. Coco follows me as well. I see two doors in front of me- one is made out of a marble-like material, and has silver streaks painted on it and the other is an ornate purple- bluish door. I walk in the room with the blue door.

The room looks awesome. The walls are painted a dark blue with purple and light blue patterns on them. I notice a huge bed and a study right in front of the bed.

I move to the study where I see a few books which look pretty fancy and old. I pick one with the black cover and touch the golden words embedded on it –'Slavery and Other Evils' it reads. I keep it back on the table and move forward.

A thing catches my eye- a mirror. An extraordinarily beautiful mirror. I walk to it, where I notice the dark blue frame, with icy blue shards sticking out of, it holding it up. I've never seen something so detailed and perfect ever in my life.

I touch it and instantly feel....something. I can't really describe it. Powerful would be too strong of a word, but it's something like that. I maybe feel in control of my mind and my body. I honestly don't know.

That feeling instantly vanishes when I remove my hand from the frame.

I see my reflection in the mirror and examine myself. Its not that different from a normal mirror but it is more....enhancing. I see my wavy pale hair till my waist and those indigo eyes staring back at me. However in order to not turn into a crazy person, I turn my back to it and proceed to the bathroom to change myself into my pajamas.

I come out and find Coco sleeping at the heel of the bed, looking like a little orange lump. I pick the book from the desk and lie on the bed to read it. I open it and realize that there is no writer anywhere mentioned. I've heard about people earlier being anonymous authors because a lot of things could happen if you wrote about the wrong subject. Most of them would end in murder.

I turn the pages and see the elegant handwriting on it. Its definitely original and in a really good condition for being more than five hundred years old. I start reading and get in to the first chapter- 'THE SLAVE'.

*

I finish five, very large chapters of the book. I look up at the clock and notice that it has been two hours since I've been reading.

This book is very different from the other books on slavery I've read. It is written from an outside perspective and basically tells the reader about a slave and other malpractices they endured.

It is very interesting however. The writer has talked about the stories he heard from actual slaves who later became lords and ladies and there are multiple cases like those, which I don't understand. Most slaves who were freed didn't just become rich, most lived in poverty even after their freedom.

Most probably, the writer molded the cases or facts to make the book more engaging. I also get why he or she wrote it anonymously, cause if you said something bad about slavery at that time, some people would be very mad at you.

After reading some more, I close the book and keep it on the night table. I feel a little drowsy, so I cover myself with the blanket and slowly(and unfortunately) fall asleep.

I see the women in silver again, more clearly. But now she is younger. She is wearing a different silver dress and adorns a silver crown with transparent and white gems at the sides and a diamond in the middle. She is sitting on a marble throne. She looks miserable, but she tries to hide it behind a face of anger.

"You have betrayed me and your husband." She sternly says to the person in front of her. I turn around and see the woman who looks up at her with resentment on her face. I realize something, it is the girl from the airport.

She has the same violet eyes but now she is wearing a violet dress with a purple cloak around her neck and and a silver tiara with violet jewels. "My husband is dead. Remember?" She snarls back.

The silver lady, now sadder says, "So is mine, and you are the killer. My best friend and the Mistress of Magic of Manelysse." The violet eyed girl smirks and nods. The woman looks sideways and orders, "Take her away."

Two guards approach her, but the girl blasts them with purple light that I recognize from earlier, and runs away.

I wake up in the middle of the night and look up at the clock. I squint at it and read 1:04. I cannot imagine I had that dream. The same ladies who my father was seemingly allies with were fighting.

I get up from the bed and switch on the lights of the room. I suddenly have an urge to go to the mirror. I don't know why, I just do. I move towards the mirror and touch the frame again. Somehow, it seems even more beautiful than before.

As I gradually move my hand to the mirror, I feel in control of everything around me.

I finally touch the mirror and my hand ...it goes through it.