"Princess, rise and shine!" The curtains were opened with a flourish.

"Mmm..."

"Princess? It's morning."

She rolls over in bed.

"Princess, come on. I have to get you ready!" She shook her petite frame gently, speaking even gentler.

The sweet Princess sat up in her soft bed, rubbing an eye with a fist.

"It's morning already...?" She said, still half asleep.

"Yes, dear. Now come on, I let you oversleep waaaay too long."

"You did...?" She hopped onto the side of the bed so the maid could change her.

The maid just giggled at her response. She clothed the sweet girl in an informal gown, and another sweet maid brought in a large plate of strawberry-chocolate pancakes and peppermint tea for her breakfast. When she was finished, the head maid walked her into the neighboring room. She ran the bath until it got warm, and left the Princess wash herself in buttermilk. Honey bubbles floated above her, and popped as they fell onto the taffy floor. Her giggles echoed through the halls, and filled the servants with joy, as her day was coming off to a good start. As she scrubbed her arms, she looked out of the large window in front of the tub. The sky was just beginning to turn lavender as the sun rose behind ice cream topped mountains. Clouds of yellow, green and pink floated above them, making the view even more spectacular. She could see the grape juice river flowing past the village of gingerbread. The strawberry and chocolate trees started to look even more ripe and melty as the sun rose behind them.

"You look so sweet today," She said to her kingdom. "I wonder what it's like at Hansel's? Do you know, Gingerbread Man?" She looked over to the large Gingerbread Man statue that stood beyond Macaroon Island.

"Can you see it from up there?" She continued, scrubbing her foot.

"I can't see it from here... And I'm on the top floor!" She giggled as she said this, dumping a fresh bucket of buttermilk over her head.

"I wonder what I'll have to do today...?" She wondered, stepping out and drying herself off with a towel.

She called her maid in after she was dry. Her maid brushed through the Princess's hair with a butterscotch comb. She helped her into a pink dress, the fabric made from the softest cotton candy. The seasons were shifting into summer, so she only wore a thin marshmallow shawl over her dress. When she was presentable, her maid escorted her towards the study. The castle walls were mostly made from gingerbread, because it was easy to build with. The floors were either made of pound cake, chess cookies, taffy, or even candy cane or butterscotch tiles. Windows lined the hallways, their panes made of licorice and the glass replaced with thin layers of clear and sometimes colored lollipop material. Chandeliers were made from various hard candies such as butterscotch or peppermint sticks, and they hung from high ceilings. Gumdrops lined the doors made from heavy dark chocolate. Various kinds of frosting painted the ceilings, and candles made from taffy burned pink flames as they hung on the walls or on chandeliers. They approached the study. The door was made from chocolate, and crushed walnuts covered it's surface. It was opened for the Princess as she stepped into the room. The study was a large room. The floor was made from peppermint marble, with streaks of what highly resembled a hard wood floor. The walls were made from gingerbread, and held together with royal icing that was decorated with gumdrops and sprinkles. The window to the back of the room took up most of the wall. It was made with licorice and lollipop glass, and decorated at the top with gumdrops and peppermint. A large desk and chair sat in the middle, made from cinnamon sticks. At it, sat a butler. He had pink hair that was long in the front and short in the back. His eyes shone like golden pound cake. He wore a tailcoat and dress pants that matched his eyes, and gloves and shoes matched his hair. He was in his mid-twenties, and would not take no for an answer from anyone.

"Good morning, Princess." He said, standing up as she entered the room and bowing as she approached him. He moved a strand of hair from his face before continuing, "We have much to do today, we must start right away. Nutcracker has arranged it all carefully, and he's not going to be happy if you request a schedule change again."

The Princess sighed and squeaked shyly, "Yes, Louan." and folded her hands politely.

"Brenna," He ordered to the maid right of the Princess, making subtle eye contact with her. "Fetch the strefolin." At his words, the maid rushed over to a small closet on the left side of the room, pulling out a large box. Louan pulled his chair out of the desk, and set it before the Princess after dusting it off. He smiled as she sat down. Brenna skipped back to the two of them, and held a golden stringed instrument in her arms. It was made from hardened honey and butterscotch. The strings were made from cotton candy, reinforced with licorice. Brenna took out a golden bow, and covered it with honey rosin. She handed both items to the Princess, who began to slowly play "Cookie Waltz." The noise it produced was not similar to a violin or viola as you might think. It closely resembled something in between a harp and a clarinet. When she was finished, she played many other tunes, such as "I Give Thee All, I Can No More," and "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy." When she finished up with these songs, she moved back to he bedroom with Brenna. The Princess was changed into another pink dress, this one had much more frill than the last one. It was decorated with icing and sprinkles at the top and bottom.

"Where are we going today, Brenna?" Princess Gretel asked politely as the maid laced her corset.

"Out into town. A villager needs some help, I reckon." She stressed the last few words as she pulled at the strings.

"Alright." The Princess managed to squeak as the brace around her midsection became tighter.

The maid crossed over to a large wardrobe on the opposite side of the Princess's room. It was filled with many different clothing items, such as shoes and shawls and petticoats. Brenna selected a pair of shoes set with sprinkles to match the dress. Over pink and white socks, Princess Gretel wore these lovely shoes. They were her favorite, being a present from her dear sister Hansel. After dressing, she was escorted to the side of the sweet castle, where a unicorn drawn candy carriage was waiting. She was helped inside, Brenna sitting next to her as Louan guided the unicorns into town. Only one candy town stood in the kingdom of Rem Sacchras. Because it was such a small kingdom, living space was limited to the single town of 50. The Princess knew all of her villager's names, and took very good care of them. If one of them ever needed help, she would make sure to answer their calls as soon as she could. She gazed out of the carriage window as it bumped down a pound cake path. The strawberry chocolate trees melted into each other. The sky was a swirling mix of pink, blue and purple. The clouds loomed over it, in yellow, green and pink. They had to make their way through some woods before arriving in the town. Massive pretzel sticks bloomed huge strawberries that oozed chocolate. Frosting and gumdrops sprouted from the chocolate cookie ground. Patches of sunlight escaped onto the ground around the small forest. Wild white and pink deer, yellow and green bunnies, and occasionally sugar plum fairies and bread and butterflies would come up to the carriage and greet the sweet Princess. When they left the woods, they crossed over the Grape Juice river, which extended from Macaroon Island all the way to the town and back. It was like a barrier to protect the kind villagers from any monsters.

The chocolate gates were not too far from the bridge over the Grape Juice river. It was opened for the carriage, and led inside of the town of sweets. Two and sometimes three story gingerbread houses stood close together. They were decorated with massive amounts of frosting, and various types of hard and soft candies that never spoiled. The street was made from pound cake, and the sidewalks were made from chess cookies. Street lights were made of chocolate and lit with a pink flame. People that noticed the royal carriage waved and smiled excitedly at their Princess, who waved shyly in return. When they arrived at the villager's house, she was helped out of the high carriage. Louan and Brenna walked their dear Princess to the door and introduced her to the family once again. The house was beautifully decorated with peppermint, gumdrops, sweet wafers, and just the right amount of frosting. A fireplace stood on the left wall, but not lit, as it was summer. A gingerbread house stood on the mantle. Their window was left open, pink and yellow curtains swaying in the light summer wind. On the window sill sat a bowl of weak tea with cream, for the bread and butterflies to drink. A large rug sat in the middle of the room, with a basket of old books and a chocolate rocking chair in the corner. A large set of arm chairs was seen to the opposite of the rocking chair, with a blanket draped over the top of it, and books stacked on the arms. To the right of the main room was a kitchen, where the smell of apple pie and heavy cream permeated. A staircase was seen beyond a closet.

Three children and their mother stood in front of the Princess and her servants, curtsying and bowing before they spoke.

"Princess Gretel, we're so glad you could visit us." The three children said at once, all of them being almost identical to each other.

The Princess giggled.

"What seems to be the problem?" Louan asked politely to the mother of the three children.

"Our roof is caving in." Said the mother, twisting blonde locks with two fingers.

"What binding material did you use to build your house?" Asked Brenna.

"We could not afford anything more than a glaze." She said, blushing scarlet and averting her gaze.

Princess Gretel looked over at Louan. He bent down so she could whisper into his ear.

"Could you come back tomorrow and drop off enough money at each house for a roof sealed with royal icing?" She whispered very quietly.

"Of course," He said, grinning widely.

"All will be taken care of, miss. Stay out of the room that is caving in for the time being." One of the children snorted at this response.

"Yes, sir." The mother said, patting the child's head.

Gretel bent down to look at the little girl that had snorted. The girl was shy, and hid behind her mother. Gretel giggled, and said sweetly,

"Is it your room?"

The little girl peaked out from behind her mother, and squeaked, "Yes, Princess..."

"Louan." The Princess called quietly.

"Yes, Princess?" He responded.

"Come back here later today and help them fix their roof."

"As you wish, Princess."

The mother smiled brightly. "Thank you, Princess! You're kindness is unparalleled!"

"It's my job to take care of you." She said simply, smiling slightly.

"Shall we take our leave, Princess?" Brenna asked.

"Yes." The Princess said politely. The three children and their mother curtsied and bowed again, and the Princess of sweets returned to her castle.

When they returned, the Princess took some time in the chapel. She spent a while studying a bible, and praying for many people. After that, she was allowed to stroll through a courtyard for a little while. She set out weak tea and cream for the large mass of bread and butterflies that stayed there to drink. She fed the candy flowers with buttermilk, (doing the gardener's job, which angered him a great deal.) and sat for awhile next to a chocolate fountain. As she was sitting, she noticed that the sky had started to cloud up a bit more than it had in the morning. It started to sprinkle grape juice, so she was immediately escorted back into the castle. After her short break, she had a strawberry sandwich for lunch, and had more lessons. She learned about the concept of Time, how to spin straw into gold, and how to make a new kind of frosting from marshmallows. After these lessons, she ate little for dinner, and returned to the washroom to bathe again. She bathed in a lavender chamomile infused bath, and again gazed out of the large window in front of her. She knew the sun was setting over the distant ice cream topped mountains, but she could not see them because of the rain. She sighed, scrubbing a foot. After drying off and putting on a nightgown, she returned to her bedroom. Settling into bed, Brenna left the room after blowing out the pink flame that burned at her bedside. The Princess sat up slightly in bed, reaching under he pillow for something. She pulled out a pink knitted scarf, and pressed it softly to her face.

"Goodnight, Hansel." She whispered, hugging the scarf as she laid back down, letting the cold tears run down her face before drifting off into a peaceful slumber.