Up north. It meant the same everywhere. A map on a wall, oriented thus, any journey to the north involved an upward direction. Standing on the balcony of a pleasant house with a view out to sea bathed in sunshine might be agreeable, but turn and face in a northerly direction and the expectation was to approach the regions of cold and frost and red noses.
Bubbles Bannatyne could not imagine Princess Rapture, heir to the Crystal Throne of the Highly Romantic Winkel of Xenia, with a red nose, so this was one of the curious things she looked forward to as she prepared to pack for the coldest summer holiday of her life.
The two girls, having attended Miss Plazenby's Extremely Exclusive Seminary for Girls for the first time last autumn, had become close friends, partly due to the fact opposites often attract, the one being a gentle graceful creature and the other a wild, harum scarum girl. They had also more recently shared together the ordeal of a life and death struggle with a horde of mechanical killer spiders, one of those occasional experiences that aided in the cementing of friendships.
A smaller version of those death spiders was currently scampering around the bedroom of Bubbles, picking up things, placing them upon her bed and then racing off to look for something else she might need in her long journey.
"No, Arry, I won't need those roller skates. I'm expecting a different sort of skating experience up north," the red head said. She had named the small metallic black thing Arry when she received him as a gift of thanks from the princess's father, King Zolid III, for helping protect his daughter from a renegade courtier's kidnap attempt. Now, like a faithful pet, the creature eagerly helped in the packing of her belongings and was so clever and swift he cut the time for such a mundane task in half.
Three sweaters were dexterously folded and packed in the blink of an eye, scarves were rolled and compressed and an assortment of shoes deftly boxed and inserted in spaces carefully calculated by the amazing computer brain of the little creature. With a click and a whirr the thing was done and Bubbles Bannatyne was ready.
A summer in Frangea was hot but not overly so for cool sea breezes abated the fierce sun on the coast and inland the rolling hills covered in thick pinewoods gave a fresh and fragrant shade. It was a perfect land. Too perfect for the restless spirit of adventure which possessed the local girl. Her father owned an airline of flitters that plied beyond the storm barriers of her homeland, a square one thousand miles on each side, divided from the rest of Winkel World by those same barriers. Bubbles had inherited her father's wanderlust and aged only eleven was already an accomplished pilot herself. For this trip with the princess however it would be on a private royal flitter provided by the land of Xenia so she could relax and enjoy the journey with her friend, a journey up north away from sunshine and sparkling seas and beach parties.
The Highly Romantic Winkel of Xenia was a very different place from Frangea. It was of course replete with romance of the highest sort. Soaring snow capped mountains, silver lakes and adorable fluffy eagles that swooped down from cloudy skies to slaughter villagers when the need betook them. Every town had its castle and every village its tavern and simple folk in picturesque costumes. It was a timeless sort of life, ruled over by a benevolent king and his horde of death spiders, though these were mainly needed to keep the great barons subject to his rule. In true romantic tradition there were always restless and powerful subjects threatening the peace of the land with an uprising here and there.
The seasons of Xenia waited for no one for it was a place full of crackling energy that perhaps explained the restlessness of so many. Where the more sheltered valleys were not afflicted with northern ice vortexes spring burst upon the land, literally. Trees and flowers blossomed into life with explosive force. It was not wise to stand too close to rose bushes at such a time as deafness would be the least worry. Summer was longer, but it seemed a timid thing compared to Frangea, and in some places such as the Glacial Park Zone a thaw was unheard of and what would be winter sports in more southern climes were all the rage.
The less severe parts of Xenia inspired the greater romantic elements of social life in the busy land. A game of hunt the rose in a garden full of roses often descended into a frenzy of activity. Excess energy built up during the darkness of winter and relief at having survived the pent up forces of spring were released in competitive battles for the prettiest flower for a lady love. Swoon parties were frequent events too as great halls would fill with dancing couples intent on swirling and twirling to grand music until, overcome by the emotion of it all there were fainting fits by the dozen so that a dance floor more resembled a huge slumber party rather than a court ball.
Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
"It has often been a source of high amusement to watch couples still awake whirling in passionate time to the soaring music suddenly encounter a swooned figure upon the floor and then tumble with spectacular effect," Princess Rapture said, describing some of the treats in store for her friend when they attended the summer court season before heading into the Glacial Park Zone for added fun. "In the past it had been tried during winter skating balls but there was such a muddled confusion over severed fingers that the practice had to be abandoned."
Bubbles could not decide whether to laugh or shudder at such a thought but the princess continued painting curious word pictures of the land of her birth for her friend.
"We can walk amid the royal gardens at night, dodging late blooms as they spit their pollen at you, and enjoy the great moon hovering overhead, while shooting stun bolts at any vampire moths which may be attracted by your red hair," she continued as the girls walked idly along the sea front at Portangel, the embarkation point to all lands north. The sun glared down and the waves foamed up against the sandy coloured rocks below so the contrast in the princess's exotic images and the current reality was startling, as was the revelation of vampire moths.
"I refuse to wear a headscarf," Bubbles declared bravely, looking around all of a sudden at the thought of some toothsome insect descending upon her from above. What she saw was the royal crested vehicle destined to take her on a journey of a lifetime, one of at least seven she had so far enjoyed, for as stated before, Bubbles was a restless soul who could never keep in the same place for long. Her intention was for the two months she was in Xenia to explore every possible corner of the mountainous land. The state flitter of the House Saxotiern sat upon the tarmac in the great landing port with a colourful honour guard of uniformed figures around it and it was this more than anything that signalled to Bubbles she was about to enter a whole new land of adventure, a highly romantic land of swoon parties, exploding roses, fluffy eagles and vampire moths. Oh, and a horde of giant mechanical death spiders that effectively policed the land if the fierce barons and lords of the court ever chose to get out of hand and try to overthrow the current ruling family. It had happened before, long ago, but who was to say it might not happen again?
Portangel was a busy place, not more so during the time of Foam Fullness, when the great moon that orbited Winkel World both near and far, made one of its irregular close approaches. The effect of this approach on the world was spectacular in itself, for all the great squares of land separated by the deadly storm barriers for months on end found those same barriers weakened through some only half-understood agency of the moon the Frangea people called Foam. Thus flitters could safely negotiate the cloudy layers, cross over into the lifeless zones between Winkels and then enter other lands. The period of closest approach lasted but five days and thus everyone who wanted to travel for business or pleasure, packed every available flitter and set off on a journey. By day two of Foam Fullness already flitters from neighbouring Winkels were descending like a swarm of vampire moths upon the entry port of Frangea and the two girls, as they approached the state flitter, watched the various vessels glide in from near and far. Most were bringing tourists to the land of sunshine and endless beaches, no doubt fleeing cooler climes for the joy of sun-soaking and warm seas. Bubbles though was doing the opposite of course, going up north where water behaved differently, becoming solid like glass, and where noses turned red and swollen and everyone spoke thickly through a mist of their own making no doubt.
"You'll love our pink and purple furs," the princess said as she nodded to the saluting guards. The luggage had all been stored aboard by this time so it was only required to make a royal progress along the elite carpetway to the open portal of the state flitter. Such was the celebrity status of Princess Rapture that she found herself surrounded by virtual reporters and aides and scramble lookers crowding the periphery of the launch pad for a glimpse. "We cultivate all sorts of creatures to provide us with the necessary warm coverings to endure a summer in Xenia. Is Arry safely secured?" then came a soft query as Bubbles pondered the wearing of furry animal skins as a thing unpleasant to her point of view.
"Oh, yes," she said. "He's in my shoulder bag right now, though eager to take a peek. I think he knows he's going home as his little legs were all trembling with excitement at the prospect of this trip."
"They may seem to be but mechanical beasts," Rappy said, "but there is that within them that makes them something much more human than many realise."
The ramp converted itself into a part of the hull and the sunshine of Frangea was shut out as the princess spoke, and in keeping with the Highly Romantic nature of the land up north that Bubbles Bannatyne was about to visit, the words of the heiress to the Crystal Throne held more truth than she could possibly imagine.