Other than the garden out back, I’d seen little of the palace grounds. After breakfast, Finn took me outside to show me around. The sky was overcast and gloomy, and he stared up at it with a skeptical eye.
“Is it going to rain?” I asked.
“You never can tell around here.” He sounded annoyed, then shook his head and walked on, apparently deciding to risk it.
We’d gone out the front door of the mansion this time, stepping out on the cobblestone driveway. Trees overshadowed the palace, arching high into the sky. Immediately at the edge of the driveway, lush ferns and plants filled in the gaps between the pines and maples.
Finn walked into the trees, pushing the plants aside gently to make a pathway. He’d insisted I wear shoes today, and as I followed behind him, I understood why. A rough trail had been made, but it was overgrown with moss, and twigs and stones littered the ground.
“Where are we going?” I asked, as the path climbed upward.
“I’m showing you F?rening.”
“Haven’t I already seen F?rening?” I stopped and looked around. Through the trees I couldn’t see much of anything, but I suspected it all looked about the same.
“You’ve barely seen anything yet.” Finn glanced back at me, smiling. “Come on, Wendy.”
Without waiting for my answer, he climbed on. The trail already had a steep incline, and it looked slick with mud and moss. Finn maneuvered it easily, grabbing on to the occasional branch or protruding root.
My climb wasn’t anywhere near as graceful. I slipped and stumbled the whole way up, scraping my palms and knees on several sharp rocks. Finn didn’t slow and rarely glanced back. He had more faith in my abilities than I did, but I suppose that was nothing new.
If I hadn’t been so busy mastering a slippery slope, I might’ve enjoyed the time. The air smelled green and wet from all the pine and leaves. The river below seemed to echo through everything, reminding me of the time I put a conch shell to my ear. Over it, I heard birds chirping, singing a fevered song.
Finn waited for me next to a giant boulder, and when I reached him, he made no comment about my slow pace. I didn’t have a chance to catch my breath before he grabbed a small handhold in the boulder and started pulling himself up.
“I’m pretty sure I can’t climb up that,” I said, eyeing the slick surface of the rock.
“I’ll help you.” He had his feet in a crevice, and he reached back, holding his hand out to me.
Logically speaking, if I grabbed on to him, my body weight would pull him back off the boulder. But he didn’t doubt his ability to pull us both up, so neither did I. Finn had this way of making me believe anything, and it scared me sometimes.
I took his hand, barely getting a chance to enjoy how strong and warm it felt before he started pulling me up. I squealed, which only made him laugh. He directed me to a crevice, and I found myself hanging on to the boulder for dear life.
Finn climbed up, always keeping one hand out for me to grab if I slipped, but I did most of the actual climbing myself. I was surprised when my fingers didn’t give and my feet didn’t slide. When I pulled myself up to the top of the boulder, I couldn’t help but feel a bit of pride.
Standing up on the massive rock, wiping mud off my knees, I started to make some comment about my amazing agility, but then I caught sight of the view. The top of the boulder had to be the highest point atop the bluffs. From here I could see everything, and somehow it was even more amazing than the view from the palace.
Chimneys stood out like dots among the trees, and I could see the plumes of smoke blowing away in the wind. Roads curved and wound through the town, and a few people walked along them. Elora’s palace was masked with vines and trees, but it still looked startlingly large hanging on the edge of its bluff.
The wind whipping through my hair made the whole thing exhilarating. Almost like I was flying, even though I was just standing there.
“This is F?rening.” Finn gestured to the hidden houses peeking out among the green foliage.
“It is breathtaking,” I admitted. “I’m totally in awe.”
“It’s all yours.” His dark eyes met mine, emphasizing the solemnity of his words. Then he looked away, scanning the trees. “This is your kingdom.”
“Yeah, but . . . it’s not actually mine.”
“Actually, it kind of is.” He offered me a small smile.
I looked back down. In terms of kingdoms, I knew this one was relatively small. It wasn’t as if I’d inherited the Roman Empire or anything, but it still felt strange to me that I might possess any kind of kingdom.
“What’s the point?” I asked softly. When Finn didn’t answer, I thought my words might have been carried away by the wind, so I asked louder. “Why do I get this? What am I to do with it?”
“Rule over it.” Finn had been standing behind me, but he stepped closer, moving next to me. “Make the decisions. Keep the peace. Declare the wars.”
“Declare the wars?” I looked at him sharply. “That’s really something we do?”
He shrugged.