"Was what Prince Shane had to talk to you about important?" Juliana asked, with Starlet right beside her.

Cassia was standing with her ams folded in the corner of my room. I knew she was still heated from our earlier argument, so I didn't protest when she didn't join the discussion.

"Not really." I said trying to avoid the subject.

************

After Shane and I had left his parents, we were silent on the way back to my room. Shane had known that I had to finish getting ready, so we were walking at a slightly quickened pace.  

"So" I started, trying to disband the silence. "What was the real reason you needed to see me Prince Shane."

He didn't respond and kept looking straight in front of him. I clucked my tongue and started to walk ahead of him until he stopped completely. I turned around to see what had stopped him.

"Are you alright, Your Highness?" I asked and Shane's expression grew more despair. He looked up at me with sad grey eyes.

"You used to call me Shane."  

I rolled my eyes and walked over to him. "Okay, first off, I only met you yesterday. You are making it seem as if I have known you for years Shane. Second, what's up with you?" I asked casually.  He sighed and started to walk with me again.

"It's just, I really did want to show you something." He sulked and was now dragging his feet behind me.

"Well, what was it?" I asked.

He shook his head. "I can't show you now. It was supposed to be a surprise, but it is located in the west wing. You know, the newer wing of the palace. Anyway, I didn't want to go through the Palace in fear that Matt or Danny would catch us."

"Matt and Danny?" I asked and Shane rolled his eyes.

"You're potential future husbands." He clarified and I felt stupid for not figuring this out sooner.

"But instead, we ran into my parents! They probably aren't happy they caught me running around with one of the selected. Matt and Danny will probably find out and be very upset. And you. You must hate me now. I must've ruined your chances." He moaned and I chuckled at his despair, ignoring his statement of impending doom.

"Shane, I couldn't hate you, even if what your idea was not the brightest," I said and he finally smiled. "I mean, you are correct, your brothers are my suitors, so this was not the best idea. But it's alright, truly."

Shane had a mischievous gleam in his eye as he neared me, and I had a bad feeling in my stomach.

"Don't you dare." I playfully growled but it was too late.

In one swift motion, Shane had swept me off of my feet and threw me over his shoulder once again.

"Seriously!" I shouted as he ran back to my room. He just laughed the whole way there and put me down right outside my door.

************

"I have to admit Miss, that does sound pretty funny." Starlet said shyly and I smiled over at her.

"I'm glad someone thinks so." I replied and stood up to prepare myself for dinner.

With my run in with the King and Queen, I wanted to be prepared to face them. And, I didn't want to face Prince Matthew, Prince Daniel, or Prince Shane. I felt guilty for spending time with Shane; I wasn't here to be his playmate. I was here for Prince Matthew and Prince Daniel.

"No more," I told myself and started to head towards the door.

Just as I walked into the hall, I saw two figures in the distance. They were whispering softly; I stepped closer to try and hear what they were saying. The figures were in the shadows, so I could't see either of their features, but as I neared I could tell one was a male and the other was a female.

"Are you absolutely sure it is tonight? I want to be prepared." The feminine voice hissed and I shivered.

Oddly enough, her voice sounded familiar.

"Yes, tonight is one of them." The male responded.

I stepped closer again to see if I could get a look of there faces, but unfortunately, my heel clacked loudly and echoed through the hall. The pair shot their attention toward me from the shadows, startled. Then, they began sprinting in the opposite direction. Seeing as I wasn't going to catch up to the two of them, I sighed and walked to the stairs. When I reached the bottom, I saw thirty-three pairs of eyes looking at me. Then, the sea of girls parted and Silvia approached me.

"Lady Sol, you are late. You should have known better." Silvia scolded me and I glanced at the floor sheepishly.

Just then, CeCelia Case, a Three from Sumner, appeared beside me out of breath. Only at that moment did I realize that she had been the girl with platinum blonde hair and light green eyes who had sat next to Willow this morning.

"Sorry I'm late Silvia," CeCelia wheezed and placed her hands on her knees to try and control her breathing. "I lost track of the time."

Silvia narrowed her eyes at the both of us. "Very well, but let this be a warning to you both. Do not be late. Ever. You should always be early if anything. Being early is on time, being on time is late, and being late... well that would be what you two are now. Punctuality is ladylike."

She spun on her heels and walked toward the front of the group. Through the sea of selected, I found Willow. We just looked at each other, and then burst out laughing, until a tall figure loomed in front of me.

"Oh my god Sol. Where were you?" Brooke asked me with her hands on her hips.

Willow rolled her eyes as she approached us.

"Nice to see you too Brooke." She and pulled me away from Brooke by my wrist.

"Whoa, eager to eat are we?" Brooke asked snarkily when she caught up with Willow's pace.

Willow ignored her and pulled on my wrist tighter to hasten my pace.

"Ow, Wills you are hurting me." I squeaked when her nails dug into my skin.

"Sorry Sol, but it is just a little further." She did not release her grip from my wrist.

"What's up with you?" 

We entered the dining room quickly. Already seated was the royal family and they all looked very happy tonight. I caught Prince Matthew's eyes and he smiled at me. I smiled back before I felt Willow toss my wrist away. I huffed and made my way towards my seat from the previous meals, rubbing gently at the forming bruises.

When I sat down, the first thing that caught my attention, besides the food, was Prince Shane's face. He wore a grin that reminded me of a little kid who just found a huge stash of his favorite candy. That grin was wiped off of his face, however, when a hand thumped the back of his head. He groaned and rubbed the back of his head before he shot a glare at Prince Daniel, who had thumped him in the first place. I ducked my head and laughed quietly. 

My stomach was growling before the food was brought out, and the monster inside of me became frantic when the silver platters were placed onto the table.  I clutched my stomach, trying to relax myself, when I heard Brooke cackle beside me.

"Is this going to happen at every meal, Sol?" She teased and slung her arm across my shoulder in a friendly gesture.

I sat still as I felt Willow's eyes burn into me. 'Throw her off,' they beckoned me. I shook my head, my own gesture responding, 'How am I supposed to do that?' 

Willow's face scrunched in annoyance before she turned her attention to the food. I shook my head and shrugged Brooke off of me. The energy in the room felt different than it had this morning; more intense, if anything. I peered around the room to see that there were only thirty-five selected girls at the table, counting me. What happened to the others? 

"Good evening, Ladies." He beamed and held our attentions. 

"As you may or may not know, you are the official selected. So first off, congratulations." he began to applaud for us, and eventually we joined in suit.

King Maxon held up his hand to silence us. "Now, I know you must all be excited to have made it this far, but you must not sabotage one another. My sons will love you for you." He lifted up his cup and we follow in pursuit. "To the future princesses of Illéa!" He then took a big sip of whatever was in his cup and sat down.

I looked down at the table and saw a mouthwatering platter of chicken resting on top of it. I was about to snatch a piece of it when my nose started to twitch. A sinking feeling racked my body as the first of  hundreds among hundreds of tiny sneezes paraded out of my nose.

"Lady Sol?" Someone asked from the far side of the table. I looked in the direction of the voice to find Prince Matthew staring at me intently with concern laced with amusement. "Are you alright?" 

"I'm fine, Your Hi—iii—aachooo!" I sneezed again and now I knew Prince Matthew wasn't holding back his laughter now.

Prince Daniel chuckled and continue to stare at me while the other selected just glared at me for getting attention.

"There isn't any achoo lemon in achoo this chicken, is there-achoo?"

I couldn't stop sneezing and the worst part was they grew more frequent and more intolerable.

"Yes Lady Sol, there is lemon. Why do you ask?" Prince Matthew responded and I sneezed again.

"I'm aller-achoo allergic to le-le-lemons-choo"

I couldn't stop myself unless I got away; at least I found at this way, rather than ingesting the food and breaking out in hives and my throat closing. Looking apologetically at the royal family, I slid back my chair with haste and sprinted out of the dining room, humiliated. I ran all the way to the garden doors and was about to push them open when I was stopped by two guards.

"You can not pass." The first guard said and I felt my nose twitch again.

"No, please, you have to let me out there. I need the fresh- fresh achoo air." I begged but he just starred at me with hard emerald green eyes.

The other guard stepped forward and offered me a smile. I just narrowed my eyes as he wrapped his arm around me and spun around.

"Come on Lady Sol. Let's get you back to dinner." He said and I looked up at him.

He had blonde hair and light brown eyes. I looked over at his name tag, which said Officer Woodwork in shiny black lettering.

"No Officer Woodwork, I need-- achoo-- fresh air. And how the hell did you-- achoo--  know my name?" I snapped and threw his arm off of me.

He snickered and backed me up into the wall leading to the garden. I looked at the other guard who was at the door, but all he did was stand in his position. He looked familiar.

I felt a cold gloved finger lead my head back toward Officer Woodwork's face, and I became angry that I was being touched, coerced into facing him. Isn't this against the rules? The rules I had to sit at my house and listen to from an old man who had nothing better to do with his time?

"How could anyone not know your name?" He grinned but then froze in an instant.

"Just what do you think are you doing officer?" An angry voice growled from the shadows.

Immediately, I sneezed again and escaped the position Officer Woodwork was holding me in; only to fall backwards with that other guard catching me. The owner of the voice came out of the shadows and I saw anger in his ice blue eyes.

"Your Highness, it's not what it looks like. I was about to walk her back to dinner. Honest Sire." Officer Woodwork held up his hands in innocence. 

Prince Matthew glared.

"The lady has been excused from dinner, as have I. You are lucky we have a friendship, Christopher Woodwork. I don't think you're mother, nor mine, would be pleased if they found out your intentions towards a Daughter of Illéa. The royal family will not allow your family to get that lucky a second time. Do I make myself clear?" He asked icily, authority dripping off of his every word.

Officer Woodwork shook and nodded his blonde head. Prince Matthew turned to me and then to the other guard at the door.

"Leger," He shouted, and I now knew why the guard looked so familiar. "Open the doors." 

Another sneeze flew out of me as the doors opened. A cooler breeze wafted into the room, contrasting with the typically hot Angeles summer air. I looked  at Prince Matthew, who stood angrily at the other end of the hallway, before walking outside to a beautiful sunset. Deeply inhaling the sweet Angeles air, I heard the doors shut behind me. I figured Prince Matthew had asked the guards to give me privacy while I calmed down.

I began walking down the marble steps leading into the garden. My heels clacked against the cobblestone path and I took in all the greenery that surrounded me. Eventually, I stumbled across the bench that Queen America and King Maxon had been sitting at earlier; I took a seat. My breathing was still deep, as the last of the lemon's effects wore off of my body. I hated how something so small like that can have that effect on me. I rested my face in my hands. A cool breeze swept my braided hair across my back, and that was when I heard footsteps near me.

"Lady Sol," Prince Matthew questioned. I looked up and his face swam into view.

I offered him a sad smile and gestured to the space on the bench beside me. He happily obliged, sliding into the space next to me.

"Thank you for inviting me to take a seat, Lady Sol." Prince Matthew chuckled and I smiled softly.

"Why are you thanking me? It's your bench." 

He laughed, amusement crinkling the corners of his eyes.

"In honesty, I wanted to make sure you were okay." Prince Matthew said when I opened my mouth to speak. I shut it quickly, blinking in surprise. That wasn't what I was expecting.

"I'm fine. The lemon's gone. out of my system." 

He shook his head, smile morphing into a frown. "I have already informed the kitchen staff to not make anything else with lemon for the duration of your stay here."

"And how long do you think I am going to stay here?" I froze, genuinely curious as to what he would say.

He smiled and lifted his hand up near my face. His fingers grazed over my cheek and his smile made something in me tighten.

"If I had my way, I'd say for a while." He whispered. I felt his free hand settle on top of mine. His other hand had stopped grazing over my face, for which I was grateful, but now the absence left me cold. I shivered and he noticed. Looking into my eyes, before his hands flew up to the buttons of his suit jacket undid the first one. That was when I freaked out.

"Whoa there. Just because you're the Prince doesn't mean you're getting that from me." I said and pushed myself back. 

He paused and looked up at me in surprise, trying to decipher what my insulting words had meant. I felt my cheeks flush when realization dawned on him.

"You think  I would do that? To a girl I just met today!"

His eyes turned the same icy blue color they had before when he was yelling at Officer Woodwork.

"Technically we met last night." I tried to crack a joke and his eyes narrowed.

"Why would you think that Lady Sol?" He asked, his tone shifting from anger to upset as he grasped my wrist and pulled me back into a proper seating position. "What have I done to offend you? I was trying to be a gentleman, like I have been taught all of my life, and offer you my jacket. I saw you shiver, you're cold. 

I swallowed and looked down at his hand encircling my wrist, it was very warm and I liked the feeling, despite having freaked out only a moment before. When he let go, I felt my teeth start to chatter again; that's when I noticed it was dark out.

"Umm, well, first off, I'd prefer to just be called Sol, if you don't mind, Your Highness. And to answer your question, a man who went over the rules with me told me not to reject you or Prince Daniel for anything. Even... that." I sighed with defeat and hugged my body to maintain heat.

Prince Matthew noticed my shivering again and his hands flew to his jacket once more. This time, I didn't protest as he undid the buttons and slid the deep blue jacket off of his shoulders. He then carefully draped the suit jacket over my shoulders and a scent of pine and mint filled my nostrils, consuming me. I grasped both ends of the jacket and held it tighter against my body. I was freezing now. Prince Matthew had said nothing to me since our awkward conversation, but then again, he hadn't exactly left yet.

"I'm sorry to have offended you Your Highness. It hadn't been my intention..."

"Sol." Prince Matthew said and I shivered.

He saw me still shivering and wrapped a friendly arm around me and pulled me into his warm body. When my side went in contact with his, I instantly felt this weird warmness spread through me.

"I hope this is okay." He referenced to the side hug. I simply nodded my head, too cold to speak. "I'm not upset with you Sol. I probably would have thought the same thing if a strange man showed up at my home and told me that, basically, the royal family was above the law. Obviously we aren't. We are like everyone else in Illéa, normal citizens." He concluded and I let out a giggle.

He looked down at me warmly from his towering position and I shrugged.

"No offense Matthew, but your life is completely far from normal."

He tensed up when I said his name without the formalities, but only for a moment.

"Hmm, Matthew," He thought aloud while I watched him. He looked back down at me and smiled again. "I like it." 

"Good, because now you're stuck with it." I stated proudly with a smile.

He laughed with me until stars began to form in the early night sky.

"How is my life far from normal, Sol?" Matthew asked and I shrugged, moving away from him.

I slipped my arms through the sleeves to his jacket and turned in my seated position to face him.

"Well, I don't think anyone's life in Illéa is particularly normal; I suppose it's just our versions of normal. Back in Kent, I lived and worked on my family's farm. Beautiful horses are in Kent, you know. Anyway, I would usually end up cooking, mother would teach me and my younger brother, Nicholas, but we call him Niko, our studies; and Father and Niko would work in the fields. That was a typical day for my family." I said and he looked caught up on every word that flew out of my mouth.

"Intriguing," Matthew said. "How many siblings do you have Sol?"

I laughed to myself. "Well that's an easy one. I have one younger brother, Niko, and an older brother named Ben..." I stopped speaking as pain coursed through my body.

Thoughts of Ben flooded my mind and I looked down at the ground without finishing my sentence. I felt Matthew's confused stares on my face and I tried to build up the courage to look up at him; big mistake. Right when he had my attention, he opened his mouth.

"Is Ben his full name?" He asked and I shook my head.

"No" I said in a whisper, afraid my voice would brake if it was anything above that. "His full name is Benjamin. Benjamin Soble."

I felt tears building up in my eyes, but I wouldn't let them fall. Matthew still looked confused so I tried to explain a little further about why I didn't feel comfortable talking about Ben.

"We don't talk about him a lot back at home though." I said quietly and Matthew looked heart broken for me; for a girl he just met today... yesterday.

"How come you don't talk about him? Does he work at a job your family doesn't like?" Matthew asked, trying to understand more; but I shook my head no again.

Swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat, I spoke. "Actually, he wasn't allowed to be spoken about ever back at home. It would just break my mother's heart all over again. We all thought he was dead."

I felt myself begin to hitch and I sniffled before Matthew asked more questions.

"Why on Earth would he be dead?"

I sighed sadly before answering.

"His job was being a guard. After a few months of him working here, there was a bad rebel attack. That was the last time we had gotten a check full of some of his money in the mail, the last letter, and then the last hope that he would ever return home someday."

Now I couldn't hold my betraying tears back as they started to cascade slowly down my cheeks.

"We had always assumed the worst, but of course not all things are true. Yesterday, I was approached by a guard—"

"You mean the one from last night?" Matthew asked alarmed. I only nodded.

"The very same. Anyway, I had found him when I walked into my room. He was talking to my maids and then he asked them if he could borrow me for a few minutes. At first I thought it was to go over safety measures and junk like that" I cracked a small smile and Matthew's face had the same smile, though his was an encouraging smile telling me to finish my story.

"But then, my maid called him Officer Soble. My last name." Matthew's eyes widened when he put the pieces together.

"Your brother.. he is..."

"Yes, he's the guard you caught last night when I ran into you. I'm actually very sorry about that anyway. I hope you weren't hurt." I said and he just laughed at me, grabbing my hands with his.

"No, of course I wasn't hurt, my dear."

I smiled back at him.

"I'm not your dear, Matthew." I teased and a boyish grin formed on his face.

"Doesn't mean I won't stop trying to call you that." He winked and I blushed.

I pulled one of my hands away from his grasp and playfully hit his chest. He just laughed and my mood was instantly lifted.

"Good, you are smiling. That makes me happy Sol." Matthew said and looked up at the darkened sky, then released a sigh. He looked at me again.

"I'm sorry my dear Sol, but it is starting to get late, and you should probably return to your room. I would walk you there, but the others may get jealous and I wouldn't want for them to dislike you so early on in the competition." Matthew said and stood up.

I followed and gave him a small smile. "Of course, Prince Matthew." I curtsied and heard him clear his throat. I came back up and looked at him quizzically, but then I remembered what I had called him only moments ago.

"I mean, Matthew." I giggled and waved goodnight to him before walking back toward the palace.

The doors opened wide once I neared them, and a rush of warm air from the palace flew into my face. I nodded at the two guards on duty and they just stared at me. Wordlessly, I walked on and approached the stairs. I was to lost in my thoughts to process that I started to ascend the stairs, but when my heel caught the edge of a step I couldn't help but notice.

I tripped backwards and let out a terrified scream while squeezing my eyes shut; waiting for the pain my back would receive for my carelessness. But I didn't get that pain, and instead I felt two arms underneath my back. I slowly peeled my eyes open and looked down to see that I wasn't touching the floor. My feet dangled in the air, but I still felt the two arms holding me up. I turned my head up and to the right, and was greeted with a pair of warm brown eyes and a friendly smile.

"Whoa there Sol." He chuckled.

Daniel looked both ways, probably to make sure none of the other selected girls were around, before focusing back on me. I couldn't tell if I was imagining things or not, but I am almost positive that Daniel's face was slowly inching closer to mine. I gulped when his warm breath hit my face, and I could smell a hint of lemon in it... ugh. Not that his breath... I mean lemons smell bad, just that I don't like them cause of my allergies.

Daniel had a dreamlike daze in his eyes and he opened his mouth to speak, however, he quickly shut it when he looked down towards my chest area. I followed his eyes to notice that he wasn't looking where I thought he was, but at the dark blue fabric wrapped around my body. I thought I heard a creak from behind Daniel, but I didn't budge; well he didn't. Daniel set me down gently and then placed his hands by his sides.

"Where did you get that jacket?" He asked in what seemed like an almost growl.

My eyes widened in realization that I was still wearing Matthew's jacket. I figured that lying would only make things worse.

"Prince Matthew gave it to me." 

 Daniel opened his mouth again to say something but I beat him to it.

"You wouldn't mind giving it back to him would you? I didn't want to take it in the first place, but I was cold and he insisted on it." I slid the jacket off of my shoulders and folded it neatly before handing it to Daniel.

Besides Matthew's pinecone and mint scent, a little bit of my own vanilla flavor lingered on it. Daniel looked down at the jacket and then back up at me.

"Next time," He croaked out and I thought he was going to cry. Then he grinned and I knew he was messing around with me. "Make sure it's my jacket instead." 

"Of course." I giggled jokingly and he kissed my hand before I said goodnight.

Before I made it all the way up the stairs, I saw Daniel turn around and face a pair of narrowed eyes. With a large scowl on his face, Matthew stalked closer to Daniel.

"Come Daniel, father wanted to see the both of us." He said icily.

Daniel gave him a small nod and walked up to him; handing him his suit jacket. Matthew looked at the jacket angrily, but when he inhaled his face softened. He grabbed the jacket out of Daniel's hands and held it slightly under his chin. He suddenly looked up and saw me. I silently gasped. His ice blue eyes met mine in a flash, then I turned around and ran the rest of the way to my room. Once the door to my room opened, I practically fell inside of it. My maids, who were sitting together whispering in hushed voices, all turned towards me with shocked expressions.

"Miss, are you alright?" Juliana said and ran up to me. I nodded my head and she pulled me to my feet.

"Come come Lady Sol, we must get you ready for bed." Cassia said strictly, and her face was slightly flushed.

I figured asking questions would only upset her, so I complied and she began to unzip my midnight blue gown and it tumbled down to the ground. I carefully stepped out of it, making sure that my heels wouldn't catch the fabric. Once I was free, I sat down on the floor and pulled off my heels; Starlet scooped up my dress with a laundry basket and gave me a small curtsy before leaving my room. When I stood up, Juliana had returned with a baby blue nightgown. I knit my eyebrows and stared at her.

"Umm, I might tolerate you guys dressing me up like a doll but I will not wear that... that thing." I  pointed an accusing finger at the flimsy, slightly see through cloth.

Cassia just shrugged her shoulders and ripped the nightgown from Juliana's grasp. Juliana frowned and turned to leave the room. Cassia muttered something under her breath and forced the nightgown onto my body.

"No Cassia, please, I beg of you." I tried to plead with her to not make me wear this, but she let out a frustrated shrug in response.

 "You will wear this Lady Sol. You got lucky enough that you fell asleep last night before we could put you into a nightgown. You are to be a Lady."

I groaned in frustration and let Cassia finish. Once she was done, she was about to grab the elastic from my hair, but I stopped her just in time.

"No. The braid stays." I said coldly.

Cassia narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.

"And I suggest you leave. Right now as a matter of fact. I will see you in the morning Cassia."

I walked towards my door and opened it wide open. After this gesture had been done, I realized that I was having a strange sense of deja vú.

The last time I had kicked someone out of my room was when Fabian showed up at my house a few weeks ago. After trying to get me to forgive him and failing miserably, I had kicked him out.

Cassia narrowed her eyes at me as she walked towards the door. Suddenly, I heard a shout, and I stood stock-still.

"What was that?" I asked myself out loud, but obviously Cassia thought otherwise.

"How would I know Lady Sol?" she said and I rolled my eyes.

"Goodnight Cassia. Please get some rest; for me."

She nodded with a grim expression painted on to her face. She stepped into the hall and pulled my door shut without another word.

Just when she left, I heard the shouts again. They sounded like they were coming from outside. I ran to my balcony as fast as I could, and clumsily opened the door. I fumbled outside and clutched the railing to break my fall. When I was composed, I peered down into the garden to see three tall figures standing together.

"Father, this is an outrage!" One of them shouted and I realized it was Daniel.

The figure next to him, who was slightly taller, shouted out next.

"I completely agree with Daniel, Father."

That one had to be Mathew, leaving the third figure to be King Maxon. He sighed loudly before responding trying to sound calm.

"My sons, I know what you are thinking, but.."

"But nothing." Matthew shouted again. "Father, theses attacks are getting worse and worse on Kent. We have no idea why, and on top of that, we only have one Daughter of Kent left! Why the hell are they attacking, and attacking there?"

Although Matthew's outrage frightened me, I felt something in me grow warm. Yes, I was very concerned that Kent was getting attacked, no doubt by the rebels, but Matthew was concerned for me. He cared; this boy who I had only met this morning cares about my safety. No wonder he had looked so angry when I was saying goodnight to Daniel. Matthew was worried.

I felt something drip onto my hand and I looked down to see a small drop of water resting on it. I reached my hand up to my cheek and felt that it was wet. I wiped off the unknown tear and returned inside.

Although Kent was my home, this wasn't my business. I was here to become a possible princess; then I could worry about Kent.

I slowly made my way over to my bed and curled up underneath the blanket. And just before I fell asleep, I got a calming thought that being in this competition may not be so bad after all.

A/N

Hi everyone!

I am very sorry that I am sooo late with this update, but at least it's up now; YAY!!!

Hope you enjoy it!

Please vote and comment. It would mean so much to me.

Love you all!

QOTD: Which suitor from Eadlyn's selection do you like the best?