All was well and tranquil in the kingdom of Illéa, the rebel forces had long been subdued and the country enjoyed peace and prosperity. Although there were no problems, the ministers always seemed to find them, and this time Crown Prince Xavier was their target. 

King Vincent stared into the brown eyes of his loving wife Queen Elizabeth, "You know he is not going to take kindly to this proposition," he voiced his opinion.

She nodded in agreement, "I am well aware, however, he has no say in this matter. Truthfully, it has been almost two years," she shook her head in disbelief, "and although there is no expiration date on the ache of a broken heart, as the future ruler this is one of the many obstacles he needs to overcome."

"I hope you are right," the King stated, although he was concerned for the welfare of his son, they had delayed the matter for as long as they could and he hoped this opportunity would somehow mend his broken heart.

The royal couple heard a loud thud from across the room, and the airy blonde strands of the Princess exposed her hiding position, "Seriena Sage Shreave, have you been eavesdropping?"

The Princess, upset with herself for dropping the book she was planning to 'borrow' from her father's study, quickly rose to greet her parents with the most innocent smile she could muster, "Mummy and daddy you should know my ears just listen on their own, plus, I dropped a pencil, how was I supposed to know you would start talking about my brother's heart matters."

The Queen shot her daughter an incredulous expression, who knew her daughter would master the art of lying through her teeth while looking all innocent. "Shameless, that's what you are," she shook her head at Seriena.

"She is your daughter after all," the King replied wittily, always siding with his daughter, only to receive an elbow from his wife, "I thought violence was frowned upon."

"I am the Queen, I am allowed to be violent if you side against me," she stated with a slight glare, her eyes then averted to her daughter and an evil smile formed on her face. 

"Your majesty, please I beg you, this will never happen again," Princess Seriena pleaded, knowing that look on her mother's face was the future of misery to befall her way.

"I know it will never happen again, because you're going to be the one to break the news about the Selection to your brother and since you have so much free time on your hands to eavesdrop, you might as well oversee the sending of the invitations."