When Winifred came through Princess Cecilia’s threshold with a letter addressed to her in hand, her heart skipped a beat. Princess Cecilia, Windsor Castle United Kingdom it read in bold. The very moment the envelope reached her hands, she ripped open the seal and pulled out the contents. Her eyes darted to the first words on the top of the page, Yale University. Cecilia scanned the letter quickly, but the words that stood out to her were, Congratulations, you have been accepted into Yale University. Awestruck, Cecilia set the paper down as if it were a piece of gold, and ran to inform her mother and father of the news. Usually, Cecilia had to arrange an appointment with the secretary at the castle since her parents were the king and queen. They were too busy to simply sit down and have a conversation. That was completely unheard of. Today she felt was an exception, so she ran all the way up 20 flights of stairs to the king and queen’s study. It was not a time to wait for the elevator. With a hesitant hand, she rapped on the door to await her response.

“Who is it?” Cecilia could hear her mother’s stern voice.

“It’s Cecilia, I really need to talk to you,”

“I’m extremely busy, can it wai-,” Cecilia could bear the wait no longer and she burst open the door without an invitation. The queen looked taken aback by this act of disrespect, but before she could get a word in, Cecilia exclaimed,

“I got into Yale!” Her cheeks flushed with joy. Her mother just smiled, and paid her congratulations as the phone rang. Cecilia’s face fell, as her mother picked up the receiver. She motioned for Cecilia to close the door behind her, and Cecilia did as she was told. As the day went on, Cecilia prepared for her journey to the United States. Of course she had been there before to accompany her parents as they traveled to the United States to have meetings, and dinner events. Although, she had never traveled such a great distance by herself, and this caused her to be very apprehensive. Her biggest fear was that everyone would treat her differently because she was a princess. She wanted to conceal as best as possible her princess-like habits and personality. Cecilia knew that this would be a difficult feat as she had been a princess her entire life, and her natural finesse is simply fit for a princess. Her long blonde locks, blue eyes and her great height give her elegance. When she wears her evening ball gowns, she looks like she came straight out of a fairytale.

Everyday, Cecilia began to pack her bags with more and more of her belongings. Whenever she decided that she was not going to pack anything else, she found another item that she couldn’t leave without. The days prior to orientation went by in a flash, and before she knew it, it was time to say goodbye. The whole castle had a dinner to celebrate the farewell of their dear princess to college. Cecilia felt her eyes well up with tears more than once, when her close friends and family bid their goodbyes.
That night it was time for complete princess transformation mode. She knew that in order to fit in well with her classmates, she would need to look like a normal person. This meant plainclothes, no heels, and absolutely no custom-made dresses.
The night was filled with twists and turns, and by the time she settled in, Winifred came in with her tray of breakfast. Cecilia had a hard time eating, and her stomach was doing somersaults. It took five castle guards to carry all of Cecilia’s luggage onto the private jet. The king and queen wished her well as she climbed onto the jet and took her seat. As the jet lifted off, Cecilia’s beloved Castle grew smaller and smaller until it was only just a microscopic dot. Cecilia was filled with a mixture of anxiety, and excitement as she reviewed her class schedule. She could not wait to start her future in the United States, and have incredible experiences. At the same time, she longed for the familiarity of Windsor Castle and her royal subjects. She could no longer ponder what was in store, because before she knew it, the jet was nearing the airport and Cecilia braced herself for the odyssey of a lifetime.
Winifred accompanied Cecilia until she reached Yale, and assisted her in checking in. Cecilia could understand that Winifred was waiting until the last possible moment to leave her. Cecilia urged her to get on her way, and she left accordingly. When Cecilia looked around the dorm room, the realization hit her that now she really was on her own. The room was much smaller than she had presumed it would be, and the walls seemed to close in on her. It was a daunting yet, pleasant thought at the same time. For once she had the power to be independent of all of the people that constantly surround her in the castle. Just when she thought she was alone, someone opened the door.
“Hi, I’m Beth. I’m your roommate,” the girl said.
“I’m Cecilia, nice to meet you,” Cecilia acknowledged. She was not prepared to share her space, which was already quite small.
“Nice accent, I’ll take it you’re not from the US,” Beth assumed.
“No, I’m from England,” Cecilia answered. “I wanted to attend university here, to get more education opportunities.
“That’s so cool! I have to go get the rest of my luggage, so I’ll see you later!” Beth exclaimed as she closed the door behind her. Cecilia couldn’t believe that she was actually here. She wasn’t quite sure how happy she was to be so far away from everything she knew.
Nothing here was like it was at home for Cecilia. She practically winced as she ate the campus food, because she wasn’t used to such a low quality spread. There was nobody to pick out her clothes, or to draw her bath. For the first time ever, Cecilia had to learn how to wash her own clothing. If she didn’t set her alarm, there was nobody there to wake her up on time. In fact there were quite a few times when Cecilia rolled out of bed just before her first class of the day began. This was quite a shock, and by the end of the day, Cecilia was exhausted from all of the chores she had to do.
As the day went on, Cecilia felt more and more lonesome. This place didn’t feel at all like home, it was too new feeling. The grass was a little too green, and the paint job was a little too new. She longed for the feeling of carved walls against her fingertips, and the clear castle air. The realization set in that she really was a long ways from home, and she had a sinking feeling in her stomach. She decided to make a long distance call to England for her parents, but after transferring many times, there was no answer. Cecilia was sure that they had important business to take care of, and they would call back later.
She waited a day, and then two days for her parents to call her, and they never did. When the weekend rolled around, Cecilia called for the equerry to send a jet for her. Beth was still sleeping when she left, so she crept out as quietly as possible. About 6 hours later Cecilia arrived back in England. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her up to the king and queen’s study and knocked on the door. Cecilia opened the door every so slightly, and it made a high-pitched creaking sound. The queen’s eyes lit up, as she saw Cecilia in the doorway and gave her a big hug.
“What are you doing here, Cecilia?” the queen asked in disbelief.
“I can’t stay at college mother, I’m too far away from home!” Cecilia heaved.
“This is what you wanted, it is your dream to receive an education in the United States,” The queen replied.
“I just miss everyone so much,”
“And we miss you too, but it’ll be vacation in no time at all,”
“Are you sure I can really do this?”
“I’m positive that you will have an extraordinary time, and you can’t give up this opportunity. I am so proud of you, and I know you will have no problem after this rough patch” The queen said. Cecilia just beamed at her mother, because even though she was preoccupied many times, she will always be there for her daughter. Cecilia decided not to stay the whole night, because she felt much better. She knew if she stayed at the castle, she would never be able to leave. Again, she took the jet back to New Haven, Connecticut, to find Beth doing homework in the dorm.
“Where have you been?” Beth wondered.
“I went home for the day,” Cecilia informed her casually.
“You went home to England and back in less than 24 hours?!” Beth was shocked.
“I have this state-of-the-art jet that my parents gave to me; it’s the fastest of its kind,” Cecilia knew she was blowing her cover. Beth gave her a slight chuckle, as if she didn’t really believe all that Cecilia was saying. Cecilia didn’t mind, because it meant she could keep her double life a secret for a little longer.
Cecilia released a sigh as she glanced at the pile of homework sitting at her desk. It was Sunday night, and she still hadn’t touched any of her homework. She sat down and opened her Calculus book, and began to take notes. She felt herself nodding off, between the pages because the work was just so redundant. Cecilia decided to take a break, and make sure her princess posture was still intact. Piling two books first atop her head, Cecilia began to walk in a circle around her dorm. Her eyes aimed straight ahead; the only way to stay balances as she placed one foot in front of the other. Two books was barely a challenge, and before she knew it she had six, seven, eight books on her head. Just as another book was making its way to her head, Beth walked into the room. For a second, Beth stood there blank-faced staring at the sight she had just walked in on.
“It’s not what you think,” Cecilia sputtered.
“Why are you balancing books on your head?” Beth questioned. Cecilia fell to her knees and began to cry. Beth grew very concerned, and asked her what was wrong. Cecilia spilled to her how homesick she was, but she knew she would never feel better until she told the whole truth.
“I’m a princess, and I live in Windsor Castle,” Beth’s jaw dropped as the news hit her like a pile of rocks. Cecilia explained how she has lived in Windsor Castle her entire life, and how coming here was a route for her to experience a change. She informed Beth of how she wants to learn as much as she can, before it is her time to be the queen. Cecilia also confessed how scared she was to be so far away from her home and her family. Beth assured her that she is not the only one who misses home like crazy. The entire rest of the night consisted of countless heroic, and amusing stories of the castle life. Beth shared some of her stories, and they bonded almost instantly. Even though Cecilia was distanced from her home, she knew she had a new friend to fall back on when she needed it.
The following weeks flew by, just like Cecilia’s mother told her they would. Cecilia busied herself with schoolwork, and the new friends that she had made. Before she knew it, it was time to fly home for Thanksgiving. This was always a massive event held at the castle with more food than anyone could fathom, and tons of “what I’m thankful for” banter. Cecilia couldn’t wait to tell everyone about her classes and new friends here at college. As she took her seat on her private jet, and looked out the window before lift off, and had totally mixed emotions. She was overjoyed to be visiting home, but a new feeling had set in. Finally, Cecilia could overlook the inferior feelings, because she could not wait to be back at her new home.