Angelica lay in bed for a long time the next morning. She could see the sun trying to peak through the drawn curtains, but she could not see the clock on the mantle from this angle, and she did not feel like moving. Of course, it did not really matter if she got up. There were no expectations of her here, nowhere for her to go, nothing for her to do. She pulled the blankets over her head trying to block out the light.

The air under the blankets soon grew too hot and stuffy. Unable to retreat back to sleep, the princess threw off the blankets and stood up. She pulled the curtains to the side and pushed the window open to crisp morning air. With a sigh she knelt, making the sign of the Heaven. “I thank you for this beautiful day, Lady of Light, and look forward to the blessings you may bestow upon me today.” Then she made the sign of the Earth. She remained kneeling, but no words came to mind, so she got back to her feet.

She opened the door to the washroom, thinking back to what Dusty had said about the spells. Over the water basin was a small piece of curved metal pipe. On the side of the piece of metal was a knob, not unlike to the one on her radio at home. She looked at it warily.

I’m being silly. They wouldn’t cast magic that would hurt me. She reached forward and twisted the knob, and immediately water began pouring from the end of the pipe. She gaped at it for a moment as it began to fill the basin.

When it was almost full, she reached out and turned the knob again. The water stopped flowing from the pipe. She washed her face quickly, feeling slightly refreshed with the cold water on her skin. “Well now what am I supposed to do with the water?” The window was too high to throw the water out though it. Then she looked back at the knob, and twisted it the other way. The water flowed up, back into the pipe and disappeared.

She chose a new outfit from the wardrobe and for the first time since she had arrived, sat down and brushed out her hair. Usually she was so meticulous about its care, but things had just been so complicated. As she did so, Angelica looked around the room that had been labeled as ‘hers’.

Her attempts at escape had failed, and she was resigning herself to the fact that she might be here for a while. The cloth covered furniture lingered in the room like unmoving ghosts. While she had simply ignored it before, if this was to be her room, she might as well make it livable.

She reached over and pulled the cloth with a flourish off the nearest piece of furniture. It turned out to be a big mistake as dust exploded into the air, making her eyes water and causing fits of coughing. The princess stumbled over to the window and pushed it open, coughing for several more minutes until the dust had settled. Unfortunately much of it settled back onto the dresser she had uncovered.

The dresser itself was a beautiful piece, made of the same dark wood as the bed and wardrobe; it was covered in carvings of exquisitely detailed feathers. She ran her fingers over the carvings along the side. She folded up the sheet and, more carefully this time, removed the sheet from another piece of furniture.

This one was a couch, trimmed in the same dark wood and matching carvings. The body of the couch was a soft to the touch white cloth. Under the rest of the sheets were a large set of drawers, several small tables, and a bookshelf. There were no accessories on the furniture, and an examination showed there had been nothing left in the drawers either.

Angelica gathered the sheets she had removed and put them in a mostly folded pile outside the door. The room looked a lot more welcoming with all of the sheets gone and the furniture uncovered. Though there was still enough dust in the room to make her nose itch, it was an improvement. The only thing this room was lacking now was a radio. She wondered if it would be possible to get one.

She moved over to the window to breath in some of the crisp mountain air, and saw movement below her in the garden through the branches of the tree just to the right of her window. He was kneeling with his back to her, but then a small bunch of greenery was tossed into a pile next to him. Was he…pulling weeds?

The tree next to her window had a large branch that was very nearly just outside her window. She climbed onto the windowsill, and inching over to the right, stepped down to the branch. From there she was able to climb down to the ground.

The demon glanced over his shoulder as she landed behind him, then stood and bowed. “Good morning, Princess. I trust you slept well.”

“Well enough,” she replied.

He nodded and turned back to the weeds. She stood behind him for a moment. If she just pretended his wings were an elaborate cloak, it was easy to just imagine he was a human. Why was he so different from what everyone had ever told her about demons? How was she supposed to see him as the monster he was?

“Shouldn’t Dusty be doing that?”

“Dusty is off on another errand,” the demon replied.

“But you’re a de…the master of this house. Why would you pull weeds?”

“It needs to be done.” He stood, dusting his hands on a pair of worn pants. “Did you need something, Princess?”

Angelica shook her head, still trying to figure out why she had come down here in the first place.

“Dusty tells me you were testing the edges of my barrier spell.”

“Barrier spell?”

“The one that goes around the grounds.” He pointed outward, as if tracing the edge of the invisible barrier for a short distance.

“Oh, that thing that keeps me from leaving?” Angelica did not mind letting the anger trace into her voice.

“Yes, that one.”

“Well I wasn’t about to just assume it went around the entire mansion,” she said indignantly. “It would be just the sort of trick a demon would come up with.”

“Trick?” he shook his head. “Do you think you can find the spell again?”

“If you didn’t change anything.”

“If you please.” he motioned her down the hill.

Angelica looked at him for a moment, trying to figure out what it was that he wanted by having her do this. With a sign she started down the hill, trying to remember about where she had traced the spell the day before. The last thing she wanted to do was lost consciousness with the demon right there, so she moved slowly, reaching out with her fingers until she touched the nothing with a slight shimmer again. “There,” she announced, turning to face him triumphantly.

He was studying her now, piercing green eyes caught hers. “and how can you tell the spell is there?”

“It’s just there. I can see it…kind of,” Angelica replied, wondering why he was asking.

“See…it?” He was still holding her gaze, and she found it impossible to look away. Was this another spell? “What does it look like?”

“It…um,” she tried to gather her thoughts. “It’s just a shimmer around my fingers.” She reached out again for the swirl. “It’s kind of brown and green and yellow. Maybe a little blue?”

“And you’ve never been taught magic.”

She could not tell if it had been a question or a statement, but she shook her head anyway.

“Well, this spell is actually here to keep others out. It just performs the convenient side effect of keeping you in as well.” He smiled before moving back to the flowerbeds.