‘Oh, Daddy, the palace is gorgeous,’ Alice-Miranda gasped.

The limousine drove through a well-lit garden of ornamental trees and on towards the main building. Its white-washed walls and upturned roofline shone in the darkness.

The car continued around the long driveway and pulled up in a courtyard behind the palace. The group was greeted by Kenzo and a small army of staff, who were lined up outside a set of timber gates.

‘Hugh-san.’ Kenzo bowed, then shook his friend’s hand. ‘Thank you so much for coming – and at such short notice.’

‘No, thank you. This lot have been buzzing all day,’ Hugh grinned. ‘I hope it wasn’t too much trouble to organise.’

‘On the contrary. It is the most exciting thing that has happened here in a very long time.’

Hugh introduced Kenzo to his family and friends. Being the diplomat that he was, Kenzo remembered everyone’s names from the day before and had managed to do some research on Cecelia, Charlotte and Ambrosia Headlington-Bear.

‘You look magnificent, girls,’ he complimented Alice-Miranda, Millie and Jacinta. ‘And your mothers and aunt are rare jewels too. And of course, Mrs Oliver, you look smashing. Please, come this way.’ He led the party past the staff and through the gates into a long hallway.

Alice-Miranda noticed some of the young women giggling behind their hands as Lawrence walked past.

‘What about our shoes?’ Millie said quietly.

‘It is all right, Miss Millie. You may wear your shoes here – it is considered a public space. You will see that I have plenty of slippers in my apartment.’

‘An apartment? That doesn’t sound very exciting,’ Jacinta whispered behind her hand to Millie. ‘I thought we were at a palace.’

About halfway down the hallway, Kenzo turned left into a timber-lined foyer. Two enormous faux dogs guarded the entrance and, sure enough, there were four rows of slippers precisely lined up in an ornate shoe rack.

Kenzo stretched out his arm. ‘Please help yourselves.’

The slippers weren’t like anything the girls had ever seen before. Beautifully embroidered with gold chrysanthemums across the front, there were pairs to fit every foot size imaginable.

‘This way.’ The doors opened and Kenzo led the group inside an enormous entrance hall.

Elegant in its simplicity, the room was bounded by shoji screens. In the centre was a perfect miniature tree atop a carved stand.

‘Is that a bonsai?’ Alice-Miranda asked the man.

‘Hai, it is my hobby,’ he replied. ‘Do you like it?’

‘I love it,’ she said as she studied the delicate cherry blossom.

Kenzo bowed and said, ‘Arigatou.’ He walked towards another set of double doors and pushed them open. ‘Please join me for drinks before our meal.’

‘Whoa!’ Jacinta gasped.

The room was the size of a tennis court. There were at least four different lounge areas as well as a grand piano and various other antiquities adorning the space.

‘Some apartment,’ Millie whispered to the girl.

‘I’ll say.’

Kenzo clapped his hands and within seconds the room was crowded with staff, offering all manner of drinks and canapés.

A rotund waiter no taller than Lucas walked over to the children. He was holding a tray with a variety of options.

Alice-Miranda smiled at the man. ‘Konbanwa. Watashi wa Alice-Miranda desu.’

‘You have very good Japanese, miss,’ the man complimented her. ‘What would you like to drink? I have pink lemonade, mineral water, iced green tea and guava juice.’

Jacinta and Millie both pulled faces at the iced green tea.

‘I’d love a lemonade, please.’ Alice-Miranda took a tall glass from the tray.

‘I’ll have the same,’ Jacinta said.

‘I think I’ll try the guava juice,’ said Lucas.

‘Do you have coffee in a can?’ Millie asked.

The man frowned at her.

‘You know, like the ones you can get in vending machines?’

‘Millie, I don’t think they’ll have that here,’ said Alice-Miranda quietly.

‘Oh no, miss. I do have that. I will be back in a moment.’ The man scurried off through a doorway at the other end of the room.

‘Are you even allowed to drink coffee?’ Jacinta asked.

‘Every now and then Mum gives me a sip of hers,’ Millie said.

‘But this is a whole can,’ said Alice-Miranda. ‘You’d better just have a little bit or you might be awake all night.’

The adults had followed Kenzo to one of the lounge areas, where they were enjoying French champagne or, in Charlotte’s case, sparkling mineral water.

‘I’m starving,’ said Millie. She eyed off a couple of waiters who were walking towards them.

‘May I offer you shishamo?’ the young man said with a grin.

Millie looked at the plate. A row of small fish, complete with tails and googly eyes, stared back at her. ‘No, thank you.’

‘Miss, they are very tasty,’ said the waiter enticingly.

‘I’ll try it.’ Lucas leaned over and picked up one of the fish. ‘Here goes.’ He downed the whole thing, head and all. The boy’s face contorted in all sorts of directions. He swallowed and took a large gulp of juice. ‘Mmm . . . delicious.’

‘Would you like another, young man? But this is for the heads.’ The man pointed at the bowl in the middle of the platter.

‘Oh.’ Lucas shuddered. ‘I couldn’t possibly. I’m full.’ He shook his head and patted his tummy, then turned away and wiped his tongue on the napkin.

‘Not so good, hey?’ Millie giggled.

‘That was disgusting. I thought I was going to throw up.’

‘Well, you did eat the head when you didn’t have to,’ Millie teased.

Lucas gagged. ‘Stop reminding me.’

‘Why couldn’t we just have a barbecue?’ Jacinta moaned. ‘I could eat a cow right now.’

The children wandered around the room looking at the array of artefacts and artworks. There were samurai swords and a full suit of armour in one corner, and a display case of the most delicate porcelain figurines. But it was Kenzo’s bonsai collection that most fascinated the children.

‘Those little trees are amazing.’ Jacinta peered into the branches of a perfectly clipped maple. She was half-expecting a miniature squirrel to run down the trunk.

‘Look at this one.’ Millie pointed at another of the delicate plants. ‘It looks like our Christmas tree. Well, a tiny version of it.’

‘Do you think the Emperor will come to dinner?’ Lucas asked. ‘Dad said that he’s hardly been seen for ten years.’

‘Like Miss Grimm,’ Alice-Miranda said.

‘Hey, that’s true. What a strange coincidence,’ said Millie. The waiter had reappeared with her coffee, which he’d poured from the can into a glass. Millie took a sip.

‘What’s it like?’ Jacinta asked.

‘Mmm, it’s very sweet and it doesn’t really taste like coffee. At least, not the sort my mum drinks.’ She took another gulp. ‘Actually, it’s pretty good.’

‘Oh no, she’s going to be dancing on the tables tonight,’ Jacinta teased.

‘No, I won’t,’ Millie shook her head. ‘I’d only do that for strong coffee. This must be like the Under Twelves version of coffee in a can.’

At the other end of the room, the double doors opened.

Like a military parade, the staff quickly formed two lines down the centre of the room.

‘Ah, Your Majesty, might I say you are looking very beautiful this evening,’ Kenzo exclaimed, before giving a low bow.

A woman walked down the lines of attendants. She wore a simple black beaded gown with her hair pulled tightly into a perfect bun.

‘We should join the grown-ups,’ Alice-Miranda whispered and then scurried with her friends to the other end of the room.

‘May I introduce my good friend, Hugh Kennington-Jones?’ Kenzo gestured towards Hugh, who bowed as low as his back would allow.

‘And of course, you have seen this man before.’ Kenzo nodded at Lawrence Ridley.

Hatsuko blushed. ‘It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr Ridley.’

‘And you, Princess.’ Lawrence smiled and Hatsuko reached for Kenzo’s arm to steady herself.

‘Did you see that?’ Jacinta grinned. ‘She almost fainted. That happened to me too the first time I met him.’

‘It happens to you now,’ Millie quipped.

The introductions continued until Kenzo reached Alice-Miranda.

‘Konbanwa, Your Highness. I’m sorry, but I haven’t learned how to say that in Japanese. Watashi wa Alice-Miranda desu.’ The child bowed at right angles. She stood back up and beamed at the woman.

‘Never mind,’ Hatsuko murmured. She studied the child, a slight sneer creeping onto her lips. She hadn’t realised that Kenzo had invited young ones into the palace.

Alice-Miranda didn’t notice the change in Hatsuko’s expression. ‘Your dress is lovely. Will Princess Kiko be joining us?’

Hatsuko smiled thinly. ‘No. She is not feeling well.’

Hatsuko had thought her head was going to explode when those two idiots told her that Kiko was at the palace. So far they had searched high and low and there was no sign of the child anywhere. Hatsuko pretended to smooth her hair. In the process, she pressed the earpiece further inside her ear and listened. If Kiko was spotted, Yuki and Yamato were to tell her immediately.

‘I am so sorry to hear it,’ said Alice-Miranda. ‘I would love to meet her.’

‘Yes, I’m sure that you would.’

As Kenzo finished the presentations, he nodded towards a young man dressed in a black suit. The fellow walked towards a large gong and picked up the mallet beside it. With great ceremony he hit the centre of the metal disc and the sound reverberated throughout the palace.

‘It is time for us to eat,’ Kenzo said. He led the party through the far set of double doors and into a dining room. The long mahogany table was laid with exacting precision.

‘Extraordinary,’ Dolly Oliver mumbled as the group was guided to their seats. It seemed that for each guest there were at least two staff members.

‘We’ll have to employ a few more people I think, Cee,’ said Hugh, arching an eyebrow at his wife. ‘Our dinner parties are positively impoverished compared with this.’

‘I think our dinner parties are just fine,’ Cecelia whispered. ‘And this, my darling, is ridiculous.’

Kenzo was seated at the head of the table with Princess Hatsuko to his left. The adults were then seated along each side and finally the children were together at the other end. The chair opposite Kenzo was empty.

‘Do you think that’s for the Emperor?’ Millie whispered to Alice-Miranda.

‘Maybe, but I don’t think they’d have put all of us together down here if they thought he was going to come. He’d probably prefer some adult company.’

Hatsuko leaned towards Kenzo. ‘Did you tell my brother about your guests?’ she asked.

‘Hai. I do not expect him for dinner but he said that perhaps he will feel up to meeting Mr Ridley at the end of the meal.’

Hatsuko rolled her eyes. Her brother hadn’t been up to anything for years. She couldn’t imagine that the presence of a movie star would change that.

Kenzo spoke to one of the waiters and within seconds the first course was served.

Jacinta stared at what looked like a flower on her plate. It was cream in the centre with pink petals and a touch of green to look like a stem.

The waiter behind her chair leaned forward and whispered, ‘It is a potato, miss.’

‘A potato? How did they make it look like that?’

‘Japanese food is not just for nourishment of the body, miss. It is for enrichment of the soul.’

‘Ohhh,’ Jacinta nodded. She had no idea what he meant but it sounded impressive.

‘I hope there’s more than this,’ Millie muttered.

A waiter standing behind the girl also leaned forward and murmured, ‘Do not worry, miss. This is the first of many courses.’

Millie turned and smiled at him. ‘Great. I’m starving.’

Kenzo nodded towards his guests. ‘Please, let us eat and enjoy.’

He was just about to take his first mouthful when the doors at the end of the room slid open.

Kenzo looked up. His jaw dropped and he was on his feet in no time. ‘Oh, Your Majesty.’

The adults and children took their lead from him too – except Jacinta, who was busily studying the floral potato and wondering how on earth it had been crafted.

Lucas leaned down and whispered in her ear, ‘Jacinta, stand up!’

‘What?’ Jacinta looked up and saw that everyone was on their feet. ‘Oh sorry.’ She scrambled to stand. ‘Why didn’t you tell me? Are we having a toast or something? We just sat down.’

Lucas elbowed her gently and pointed towards the doorway.

Kenzo bowed deeply. The rest of the group did too. Jacinta hurriedly joined in.

The man in the doorway merely blinked at the group. His face was drawn and his dinner suit hung loosely from his thin frame.

‘I’m glad there’ll be lots to eat,’ Millie whispered to Alice-Miranda. ‘The Emperor looks like he could do with some fattening up.’

At the other end of the table, Hatsuko’s stomach lurched. Her brother had not dined with guests for years. She silently cursed Kenzo and his chance meeting with Hugh Kennington-Jones.

‘Your Majesty,’ Kenzo said and bowed again. Everyone else did too.

The man nodded.

Kenzo smiled. He then walked towards the Emperor and whispered something.

‘Ladies and gentleman, I would like to introduce His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Jimmu.’

‘Konbanwa,’ the Emperor said in an unexpectedly deep voice. ‘Please sit down.’

Kenzo looked at the empty chair at the head of the table then glanced at his own seat. ‘Would you like to sit beside your sister?’

‘That is your place, my friend. I will sit right here.’

Within a second the chair had been pulled out, the perfect place setting straightened and the Emperor was seated.

‘I cannot tell you what a thrill it is to have you with us,’ Kenzo said quietly.

‘It is about time that I live again, my friend.’

Kenzo then went around the table introducing the guests one by one. Alice-Miranda was seated to the Emperor’s left.

‘This is Mr Hugh and Ms Cecelia’s daughter, Miss Alice-Miranda,’ Kenzo concluded the introductions.

‘It’s a pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty.’ The child looked up at him with her brown eyes as big as saucers. ‘I love your house – well, your palace, of course. It’s very beautiful and I imagine that this is only a small part of it.’

‘This is Kenzo-san’s apartment. But you are right. This palace is far too big and empty,’ said the Emperor sadly.

‘Well, it’s gorgeous all the same. We have a lovely home too, although it doesn’t compare to this. Mummy and Daddy have lots of parties. I think it makes the house feel treasured. Do you like parties?’ she asked.

Emperor Jimmu stared blankly. He looked as if he was lost in a happy memory. ‘You know, I do, but there have been none for such a long time. Not since my beautiful Kiyomi . . .’

Hatsuko was listening from the other end of the table. She was pleased to hear the dead Empress’s name. Surely he would be sucked back into his grief, and he would return to his room to mourn in private, just as he had done for years now.

Alice-Miranda nodded. ‘I am sorry about the Empress.’

Kenzo held his breath.

‘She was very beautiful. But you have a daughter and I’m sure she must be lovely, like her mother. You must take great comfort knowing that a part of your wife lives on. Not that I know much about anything yet because I’m only eight and one-quarter. I can’t imagine how hard it would be.’

The Emperor stared at Alice-Miranda. ‘Did you say that you were only eight and one-quarter?’

She nodded.

‘Then you are the wisest eight-and-one-quarter-year-old I have ever had the pleasure to meet.’ A tear welled in the corner of his eye and he quickly brushed it away.

Hatsuko was waiting for him to run from the room. But he didn’t. Instead he looked up at his sister.

‘Where is my daughter?’ he asked. ‘I would like her to join us for dinner.’

‘Oh!’ Alice-Miranda clasped her hands together. ‘That’s wonderful, Your Majesty. I’ve been hoping that we might meet the princess.’

Hatsuko’s stomach clenched. She stood up from the table and bowed as she exited the room.

In the hallway she hissed into her watch. ‘Where is she, you fools?’

Back inside the dining room, Kenzo beamed. For the first time in years it seemed as if things in the Imperial household were looking up.