JADE
Two days later, in the palace, everyone was gathered in the throne room—everyone except Cassey. After a few minutes, the eunuch announced, "The Princess of Galway has arrived."
She entered the hall majestically, followed by four maids and six guards. She knelt gracefully before the king and greeted him, then introduced herself.
"I am Princess Kiara of the Galway Kingdom, fifteen years of age, daughter of King Thomas and Queen Nyla, who have honored your request."
"Rise, my child," the king said kindly.
The eunuch then announced, "The Princess of Swansea has arrived."
I stepped in elegantly, feeling on top of the world.
My gown sparkled like that of a goddess, and I wore a golden mask so the prince wouldn't easily recognize me. Four maids and several guards walked behind me—none of them real, all conjured by magic.
"Swansea?" the king said with surprise. "I don't recall sending a letter to Swansea."
"Really, Your Majesty?" I said, using a practiced accent to mimic the distinct tone of Swansea nobility. "But I'm afraid we received a letter from St. David's Kingdom."
"May I see the letter?" the king asked.
One of my maids handed it to a nearby guard, who delivered it to the king. He glanced through it, and his expression shifted to one of confusion and speechlessness.
"Do you wish to send me back, Your Majesty?" I asked politely.
"No, no, of course not, Princess," he replied quickly. "It just caught me off guard, that's all." Then he looked at me again.
"But why are you wearing a mask?"
"Oh, that…" I hesitated slightly. "It's a royal tradition in our family. Brides-to-be must wear a mask until after their wedding."
"I see," the king nodded. "Well then, please introduce yourself."
"I am Princess Jade of the Swansea Kingdom, fourth daughter of King Lawrence," I replied with a bow.
"Thank you both for coming and honoring my invitation," the king said warmly. "You are most welcome to the Kingdom of St. David." Then he turned to Nicholas. "Please, take some guards and inform Prince Cassey that the princesses have arrived."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Nicholas said with a bow before exiting.
NICHOLAS
I went to Cassey's room, but his door was locked. I knocked. "Cassey! Cassey! Open up!"
No response. It was the first time he'd ever locked his room.
"Cassey, I want to show you something. Open up now!" Still no response. I turned to one of the guards and whispered something to him. He nodded and left, returning a few minutes later. "What did the king say?" I asked. "He said we should break the door and bring him out—no matter what state he's in," the guard replied. "Alright. It's the king's order—we have to break the door."
The guards broke the handle and pushed the door open. We walked in and found Cassey still asleep. I moved closer and tried to wake him. "Cassey? Cassey!" I shouted. "Hmm…" he yawned groggily. "What is wrong with you, Cassey?" I snapped. He sat up slowly. "What have I done this time?" he mumbled, still half-asleep." Weren't you informed the princesses would be arriving today?" He fell back on the bed and muttered, "That's none of my business. I'm not going anywhere." I sighed and signaled the guards. "Carry the bed."
Luckily, he was still lying on his four-poster bed with curtains. Although it was quite heavy, the guards managed. I had to call a few more guards to help carry it.
CASSEY
In my deep sleep, I vaguely heard someone say, "The Prince has arrived."
I opened my eyes. It wasn't a dream. I was really in the throne room.
The guards had placed my entire bed in front of the king. "Cassey!!" King Harrington yelled. I sat up on the bed and folded my legs, facing him.
"Yes?" I said reluctantly. "You are a huge disappointment. How could you defy my orders like this? I'm ashamed of you. You're always bent on disgracing me—" I interrupted him, "Enough, Harrington. I'm tired. They can go back and return tomorrow. I'm not ready for this, and I never asked for it. Okay?" I snapped.
"You—"Jade cut him off. "That rude? Do you even know where my kingdom is located?" I pulled the curtain aside to see who made the bold statement.
There she was—the masked princess. We locked eyes.
I stepped down from the bed and walked up to her. "Did you say something?" I asked. "Doesn't it look like I did?" she replied confidently, no trace of fear in her tone. I smirked. "Look at you—so confidently disrespectful. What a shame they didn't train their princess to have manners."
"If you were a well-trained prince, you wouldn't have missed this important event or spoken so disgracefully," she shot back. "Watch your mouth," I warned, my voice growing tense. "Or else what?"
"You're a pretty stubborn girl, and I promise you—during your stay in this palace, I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget," I said, locking eyes with her.
"Then I'll see how far you can go with that," she smirked again. "Enough of the drama, you two," King Harrington interrupted. "I expected formal introductions, not a stage play!" I exhaled and said, "Shall we?" Princess Kiara spoke first.
"I am Princess Kiara of the Galway Kingdom, fifteenth child of King Thomas." Then the masked girl spoke.
"I am Princess Jade of the Swansea Kingdom, fourth daughter of King Lawrence." I gave her a long look and said, "I'm Prince Cassey of this kingdom—the only son. Nice meeting you, Princess Jade."
"Only son? No wonder you're so disrespectful. Won't you at least welcome the other princess as well?" she mocked. I was done with her. I walked out. She's really going to see another side of me soon.
Later, Nicholas came into my room after the bizarre introductions. I had just finished my bath and was drying my hair and face.
"You just had your bath," he said plainly.
"Yeah," I said as I walked to the mirror. "How did it go with the princesses?" I asked him. "They've both been given apartments to stay in," he replied, sitting on the sofa. "Everything just feels so awkward today."
"If there's a word bigger than 'awkward', I'd use it for today," I said, arranging my hair. "How come there are two princesses?"
"I don't know. The king doesn't even remember sending two letters—especially not to Swansea. It's all just... strange."
"And did you notice the Princess of Swansea's voice sounds familiar?" I added quickly. "I'm glad you noticed too. I think she's the same girl we met in the forest."
"Don't jump to conclusions," Nicholas said. "Two people can sound alike."
"Oh really? That's what you think?" I asked, turning to face him. "Yeah?"
"Don't worry, pal. I'm going to prove you wrong—by removing that mask," I said with a chuckle. "And after you do that, just remember—you'll be marrying her," Nicholas teased. Cassey interrupted, "That's never going to happen. Both of them being here is just a complete waste of time."