CHAPTER 74: GARDEN OF PRANKS

"I haven’t had my time yet," Callum pointed out.

Leo grinned, throwing an arm around his shoulder. "You’re the quiet type. You can wait."

"You can sketch us from a distance," Lance added.

Evelisse blinked at them both. "What kind of bonding are we doing?"

"Only the greatest kind," Leo said dramatically. "The kind involving mischief, chaos, and sibling memories that get you mildly scolded but deeply satisfied."

"We mean pranks," Lance whispered loudly.

Lucien, who had been sipping tea in silence, set down his cup. "If Evelisse is alright with it, then I don’t mind."

She looked at the twins. They were practically bouncing.

She giggled. "Okay. I accept the royal invitation of twin bonding."

"Yesss!" they high-fived.

Felix leaned toward her, mock-whispering. "Be careful. They once replaced my paint water with glitter glue."

"That was beautiful chaos," Leo grinned.

The twins led Evelisse out of the breakfast hall with exaggerated importance, their cloaks flaring like tiny capes.

Fluffy hovered beside her as they walked. ’Are you sure about this?’

’I want to see what it feels like,’ she thought. ’They’re always behind the weird soap explosions and upside-down chairs. Might as well be in on it.’

"You’re going to regret this."

’Probably.’

They reached the castle’s sparring hall, currently empty, but still echoing with the scent of dust, oil, and steel. A few swords were lined on the wall, blunted for training. The floor was polished wood, and sunlight streamed through the narrow high windows.

Leo clapped his hands. "Alright, first—operation cloak-swap!"

Lance pulled out a folded bundle from under his tunic: a long, dramatic royal cloak—but this one was embroidered with massive sunflowers and stitched in bright canary yellow.

"We switch this with Brother Lucien’s regular ceremonial cloak."

Evelisse’s eyes widened. "Won’t he notice?"

"That’s the test!" Leo said. "He’s always distracted with papers."

Lance added, "We’ve calculated the odds of success."

"Thirty-seven percent," Leo admitted. "But the payoff is glorious."

"What else?" Evelisse asked.

"Next, we fill Jared’s boots with glitter dust," Lance said.

"Then... switch the guards’ chalkboards so the training schedule has dance moves instead of drills."

She giggled. "That one’s just helpful."

They high-fived again.

’Fluffy,’ she thought, ’I think I’m in danger of enjoying this.’

Fluffy groaned. ’This is the beginning of your downfall.’

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

They moved fast. Evelisse followed them down the corridor toward the ceremonial wardrobe room.

Leo picked the lock with an old hairpin.

"That’s illegal," Evelisse whispered.

"Only if you get caught," Lance said.

Inside, they carefully removed Lucien’s folded cloak from its resting place.

Leo dramatically replaced it with the sunflower version. They fluffed it up to look proper.

"Perfect," Leo said.

"He’ll be radiant," Lance agreed.

Next stop: Jared’s boots.

They dashed into the weapon storage, where Jared often left his things after sparring. True to form, his boots were there—shined, neat, and waiting.

Lance sprinkled the glitter like fairy dust, while Evelisse stifled her giggles behind both hands.

"Done!" Leo declared.

Then came the guard rotation board.

Evelisse climbed onto a barrel to reach the upper hooks.

Lance handed her the replacement—complete with fake orders:

Guard Formation: Tango-Two Step.

Patrol Pattern: Swan Pose, Crab Walk, Flourish.

She hung it with a proud nod.

"Now we wait," Leo grinned.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

Later that afternoon, chaos blossomed.

A page sprinted down the hall yelling, "The Crown Prince has gone floral!"

Lucien had appeared for court discussions wearing a flowing sunflower cloak, trailing petals.

He paused only briefly before continuing into the chamber like nothing was wrong.

Jared stomped into the hallway, glitter erupting from his boots with every step.

"WHO PUT FAIRY SAND IN MY SHOES?!"

The guards outside the training courtyard were hesitatingly crab-walking to their posts.

Evelisse nearly choked from laughter.

Snugglewuff barked happily beside her.

Leo and Lance gave synchronized bows.

"Welcome to the tradition of twins, little sister."

She saluted. "It was an honor."

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

That evening, Evelisse wandered into the castle garden. The sun was low, casting golden light over the hedge maze. The roses were in full bloom, the air sweet with their scent.

She paused near a particularly tall hedge lined with red and ivory roses. Something glittered between the roots.

Curious, she crouched and brushed the leaves aside.

A latch.

"Huh?"

She pressed it.

Click.

Part of the hedge rippled, then shimmered and slid open like mist.

Behind it, a crystal tunnel spiraled downward, lit from within.

Snugglewuff whined beside her.

Fluffy floated closer. "That’s... not supposed to be there."

Evelisse stepped closer.

The light pulsed faintly, like it was breathing.

"Is this... part of the castle?"

’No map has ever mentioned this,’ Fluffy said slowly.

She reached toward the edge—

—and the moment her fingers touched the threshold, a gust of wind blew outward, pulling at her sleeves.

She stumbled.

And slipped inside.

The hedge sealed shut behind her.

Snugglewuff barked wildly.

Fluffy screamed, "Evelisse!"

Inside the crystal tunnel, Evelisse stood, eyes wide.

The air was cold. Silent. Magical.

Floating ahead of her was a glowing sigil, hovering midair.

Then—

A voice echoed, not hers, not Fluffy’s.

But deep, ancient.

"You are not supposed to be here."

Her heart pounded.

She took a step back—

—but the tunnel began to shift.

The crystals darkened.

And behind her—

The exit vanished.

The crystals shimmered with a pulse that wasn’t light, but feeling. Evelisse stood still, her hands trembling at her sides as the floor beneath her hummed softly. Not like a tremor, but like a song—low and deep, as if the walls themselves were remembering.

She looked around, heart pounding in her chest. The tunnel curved ahead, narrowing slightly as it led deeper underground. Behind her, there was no door, no latch, no crack of light—only seamless crystal wall.

’What is this place?’ she thought.

Fluffy’s voice, normally present in her mind, was silent.

"Fluffy?" she whispered aloud.

Only the tunnel answered, vibrating faintly beneath her slippers. Evelisse took a step forward. The moment her foot touched the next panel of crystal, runes flickered beneath the surface. They rippled like golden ink dropped in water, forming symbols she couldn’t read.

"I-I am Princess Evelisse of Ashthorne," she said aloud, her voice steady despite the tremble in her knees. "I ask for safe passage."

The runes brightened for a moment—then vanished.

She swallowed. ’Well... that didn’t work.’