I forced myself to breathe. I stood perfectly still, feet frozen in place, and breathed like I learned when I was ten. I didn’t look down. I watched the floors flash by, not trusting myself to speak, particularly given the state of my stomach.
Luckily, it was over quickly.
At the eighth floor, the rug glided to a stop, and Ankha stepped promptly off the edge. I quickly joined her, half-leaping through the opening in the stone bannister. I was relieved to find myself on solid ground, on a gold and purple rug, on a landing decorated with winged cats. The bellhop didn’t follow, which seemed strange until I remembered we had no luggage.
Ankha walked briskly down the hall, past a number of colorful doors, then stopped in front of one painted lavender. She inserted the bronze key into a bronze lock.
The door clicked open.
The room we entered had absurdly high ceilings and gold wallpaper decorated with purple flowers and birds. Three tall windows took up one side of the main sitting area, framed with velvet curtains and gold paint. Vases filled with flowers adorned round tables between each window and in the center of the room.
I didn’t see a bed, but two doors stood on opposite ends of the suite.
Another, much larger table stood out on the balcony just past open French doors. It was already covered with plates and pitchers, silverware and glasses, folded cloth serviettes and heaping platters of food.
A lit fireplace burned on the wall to my right. On the other side of the suite, I saw a small writing desk and two couches.
My eyes returned to the balcony, right before I walked in that direction. London, familiar but not, spread out before me as soon as I got close enough to see past the stone railing.
That time, the differences struck me at once.
Winged figures flashed by, and as I squinted at them, I felt even more certain that it waspeopleI was seeing. They flew through the sky at breakneck speeds, with massive, eagle-like wings strapped to their backs. Most carried briefcases, or wore satchels, or backpacks. Their long coats flapped in the breeze. It might have been ridiculously funny under different circumstances, but as it was, I could only stare at them, watching them dive and swerve as they flew high above the roads.
From that greater vantage point, I also saw a number of vehicles.
Most seemed to be drawn by some kind of animal?not horses exactly, although they looked a bit like large horses from a distance. They moved incredibly fast, with an eerily smooth gait, pulling colorful carriages. Like at home, the larger the carriage, the more animals drew it. The largest one I saw had sixteen of the midnight-black creatures running in front of it, and looked to be three stories high.
I also saw a few red, double-decker buses, which threw me. Those didn’t appear to be drawn by any animal, but unlike the buses at home, they were silent, and a few times, I swore I saw them wink in and out of existence.
In the distance, tall skyscrapers darkened the horizon. From the window of the hotel, it lookedsimilarto the downtown of the London I remembered, but again, something about those buildings looked off. The shapes weren’tquitethe same, the glass windows glinted differently in the sunlight, and I swore some of them appeared to bemoving?
“Are you going to eat?” Ankha asked crisply. “Or just stand there, mouth open, like an imbecile?” She snapped her wrist to unfold her napkin. “Do you really not have any awareness of how you look when you do that?”
I turned my head, and saw my aunt tucked into the table. She didn’t look up as she poured herself a glass of a violet-colored juice.
“…Although,” Ankha conceded next. “I strongly prefer that you do your gawking here, rather than out on the street.”
I walked over to the table and sat down.
I pulled my own napkin onto my lap, and, after a brief hesitation, took some toast for my plate, then sausages, and what looked like a spinach and cheese quiche.
“Magique?” I ventured to her. “That’s what this place is called?”
“Yes. Obviously. How many times must I say things?”
I bit my lip, but kept my voice civil. “How did we get here?”
“You saw it. An official doorway was installed on the property when I was made your guardians,” Ankha replied. “It’s regulated, of course.” Her voice dropped to a resentful mutter. “More like a prison than an honor, with the Praecuri breathing down my neck every other day, and spying on me whenever it suits them.”
My jaw flexed. It was difficult not to point out they’d have a hard time spying on Ankha if they watched the Victorian house, given she was never there.
“Praecuri?” I asked instead. “What is that?”
Ankha gave me a shrewd look. “You sure you want to get into that now?”
“Yes,” I insisted.
Ankha took a sip of tea, muttered a few more words, then seemed to make up her mind.
