A sheltered and naive young princess is given a single year to find her true love in a land full of wonderfully eccentric and handsome princes! Romantic adventure and unexpected love await in the fantasy land of Seraphia!
I hum one of my favorite tunes as I search for the recent batch of sugar cookies I had helped the kitchen staff make. I was so proud of myself when they came out okay -- they were for Azura, of course. I found out he had never tried them before ( or at least assumed, since he had no memories past arriving in the town we had found him) .
I take out a cloth and start to place the cookies inside, preparing to tie it shut in a cute knot.
Azura had the cutest expressions when he bit into something delicious -- it was as amusing as watching a baby try a new treat. I couldn't wait!
"Princess Noel!"
The sudden voice and sound of the kitchen door banging open catches me off guard. I nearly drop my handful of cookies!
"Ah, you scared me, Cassius!" I'm turning around to face him properly, but he's already got his gloved hands on my shoulders and is twisting me gently around to look at him. I stare up into his big brown eyes -- as warm as ever with the ability to melt any woman on the spot. And I wasn't immune.
"Whatever is so urgent...?" I look at him, eyeing his unreadable expression. His eyes were slightly wide and his mouth was opening and closing repeatedly as he searched for his words.
"Your highness," he takes his hands off of me and looks embarrassed, clearing his throat and rising up with a more disciplined posture.
I nod expectantly, raising an eyebrow.
"...I just...Please forgive my forward was, but as one of the most trusted knights of the Royal family, it is my duty to watch over you carefully. That includes driving away those who would be poisonous or socially harmful to you."
"'...Socially harmful...?'"
"Yes," Cassius looks away for a moment and plays with a strand of his golden hair, like he used to do when we were children. He usually did that when he was thinking, it was quite adorable.
You never grew out of it!
"What I'm trying to say is...please distance yourself from Azura. You mustn't let him charm you -- you have 12 very suitable men picked out by your father for potential marriage. Don't waste your time with a -- MMF?!"
I drop my hand back to my side, chuckling at Cassius' stuffed cheeks. He brings his hands up his mouth to prevent the mouthful of cookies from spilling out, which effectively shuts him up.
"Cassius! Don't be silly! I've never set foot outside of this castle because my father is so overprotective! That means I have very few friends -- I'm only establishing a friendly bond with Azura!"
Cassius tried to speak again, but I shook my head and skipped out of the room.
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"Azura!"
I shout over the ledge, waving the bag of cookies. Azura notices me, his sword wielding form collapsing from the distraction. He blinked at me a moment before flailing around for me to be quiet.
"I brought cook -- whoa!"
The world started to spin as I lost my balance and slipped over the bars. I land noisily in the trees beneath me and sit there, tangled in the leaves and branches. Blinking, I try to make sense of what just happened.
SHHHK!
"Princess Noel!"
I shift around awkwardly to look down and see Azura rushing to stand below me, holding his arms out. His eyes are wide. "Are you alright?!"
I burst into laughter at my situation and hurriedly untangle myself to drop into his arms. Azura grunts at my weight as he catches me, stumbling for a moment.
"Are you hurt anywhere?" He carefully sets me down on my feet and I shake my head, holding up the bag of cookies like a trophy.
"Azura, I brought you cookies!"
"Geez, only an airhead like you would survive such a fall." Azura brings his hand up to run through his wet hair, and I notice the condition he's in.. His fingers are blistered and cut, his face is battered and dirty here and there, and his eyelids are droopy with exhaustion.
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"Azura! How did you get like this?" I take his hand in mine and look at it carefully. It looked like he had attempted to bandage his hands up, but failed.
"Training." He shrugs, "It gets pretty rough, dueling the other trainees..."
"Oh no..." I feel guilt weighing on me and decide to help patch him up as he sits to eat the cookies I've baked.
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"Azura."
"Yes, princess?"
"What makes you...work so hard?"
"What do you mean?"
"You know..work so diligently throughout the day?" I clean one of the cuts on his finger and watch him wince. Azura looks at his patched up hand like a girl admiring her nails.
"Well..I have to become a knight, don't I? How else am I going to protect you?"
I smile back warmly at him, feeling a fluttering in my belly.
"That's a silly question considering you recruited me for this job."
"You're right," I finish treating his other hand and hold it in mine briefly. "Silly question."
