Meeting The Princes Of The Night Kingdom

Chapter 1

The moment I woke up, I felt a ball of dread build up inside of me, today was my 18th birthday, the day I, Princess Edith Lexington, was to be married off to one of the princes of the Night Kingdom.

Our kingdoms were opposites of each other, I mean it literally, the names of our kingdom are Day and Night. There is also the fact that the Night Kingdom was full of vampires, and they treated humans as servants and food.

The Day Kingdom, on the other hand, was full of humans. Nothing was special about our kingdom, it was just a boring regular kingdom.

I sighed, stretching my arms above my head I heard so many cracking noises. Oh, that felt so much better.

Crawling out of bed, I put on my tunic and pants and smoothed my hands down the sides.

There was a knock on my door, "Young lady, open this door immediately," Mrs. Williams said.

Walking over to the door, I pulled it open, "What can I do for you?" I knew fairly well what Mrs. Williams was going to say.

Mrs. Williams sighed, "Come on, we need to get you into a dress and make you look presentable for the young princes of the Night Kingdom."

Sigh, I knew it, "Do I have to? You know I hate dresses."

She glared at me, throwing her hands up in the air, "Oh, of course, you do! Of all the princesses I have served you are the only one who dislikes dresses," she placed her hand on her hips.

Rolling my eyes, I complained, "Ugh, I just don't like wearing dresses, they get in the way of running and maneuvering around, plus, riding a horse in a dress it so annoying."

Mrs. Williams sighed, "Just put on a dress, Your Highness. You are giving me even more gray hairs."

I smiled, Mrs. Williams was like a second mother to me, she has been with me my whole life, I will miss her very much when I leave.

Walking over to my closet, I opened it and grabbed the first black dress I saw, taking off my clothes and I slipped the dress on, hopping around trying to get it on.

I heard Mrs. Williams sigh, I asked, with my arms stuck in the armholes of the dress and waving them around, "A little help please?"

She reached over and pulled the dress downwards, my head popped out, I let out a sigh of relief.

Mrs. Williams looked me up and down, "No, you aren't wearing this dress, it is too small. Try on another one."

"Do I have to? It looks fine to me," I gestured to my body.

Mrs. Williams crossed her arms staring me in the eye with a raised eyebrow.

"Ugh, fine," I dug around in my closet and tried to find a black dress that would fit me. I finally found one and slipped it on, "How does this one look?"

She looked me up and down again, "Hmm if I asked you to change into another dress would you?"

I shrugged, "Do you want me to? I will if you think I should."

Mrs. Williams asked, "Can you change into another dress? I want to see another one."

"Sure, Mrs. Williams. Why don't you choose one for me?" I pulled off the dress I was wearing.

She looked through my closet and pulled out a black dress with silver and gold threads stitched into it.

Handing the dress to me, "Try this one, dear."

Not wanting to accidentally rip the dress, I slipped it on carefully, I asked, "So, is this one it?"

Mrs. Wiliiams nodded, smiling, I saw her wipe away a tear, "You look beautiful, my drear girl, oh, how I will miss you when you leave us."

Hugging Mrs. Williams, I mumbled, "I will miss you too Mrs. Williams, you are like a mother to me."

She pulled away from me, holding my shoulders, she smiled, "I have been with you since you were a baby, I watched you grow into the beautiful, smart, kind young women. I hope you will keep on growing and become stronger, my dear child."

I smiled, "Thank you, Mrs. Williams, I hope I will see you again after I get married," I grimaced a little at the word married.

She patted me on the back, lovingly, "We'll see, dear, we'll see. Now, come on, we need to get you to breakfast. The princes will be here in a few hours."

Staring at her with a weary look, I asked, "A few hours? Then why am I wearing a dress this early in the morning?"

Crossing her arms, she asked me, "When was the last time you wore a dress?"

I opened my mouth to answer, "Wel-"

Mrs. Willams cut me off, "When you were five-eighteen years old, for every event and ball you participated in, you wore a tuxedo. Since you were four you kicked and screamed whenever someone made you wear a dress."

I crossed my arms over my chest, "So? What does that have to do with it?"

Mrs. Williams sighed, "You need to learn how to walk in heels, oh, speaking of heels, we haven't picked a pair out for you yet."

She pulled out the draw full of shoes, she picked out a black high heel with silver swirls designs on it, "Here you go, dear. Put it on."

Taking the shoes, I slipped them on, ugh, I felt like I was about to fall over at any second, "Can't I just wear flats?"

Mrs. Williams crossed her arms.

I sighed, "Okay fine, I'm going to go eat then, see you later Mrs. Williams." I hope I don't break my neck, these damn heels are so tall.

Mrs. Williams smiled, "Of course, dear."

Making my way to the dining room, I sat down next to my brother, Shane, he was the youngest boy in my family, and my best friend, all three of my older brothers were my best friends. I was the youngest child, so I basically equated to nothing.

There are three brothers, the oldest brother is Arthur, he is the eldest child, which means he is to be king one day, the second oldest brother is Kieran, he is the fourth child, and the third oldest brother is Shane, he is the sixth child. All the men in my family were very skilled in battle.

I have three sisters, Ashlen the eldest sister and the second child, Ashley is the second eldest sister and the third child. Ashlen and Ashley are twins. Amanda is the third sister and the fifth child.

Then, there was me, I am the seventh child and the fourth sister, and the youngest sister.

I was better at shooting arrows and training with my brothers then I was at sewing and painting, dancing was one of the only things I loved about being a princess, although the food was a close second to dancing.

My father, King Albert always told me I was talented and beautiful no matter what and that I would always be his little girl. My mother, Queen Theressa, always told me to never doubt that I was beautiful, inside and out, no matter what people said or whatever I thought about my body's flaws.

I loved my family very much, we were all very close.

Okay, so back to breakfast.

My brother, Shane, asked me, "So, you're getting married to one of the princes from the Night Kingdom today, how do you feel about it?"

"I guess it doesn't really matter to me, I don't know them, I have never met or seen them."

My brother asked, "You do know that they are vampires, right? They drink blood and are really strong and fast."

I shrugged, "Yeah, I know. I just don't care."

He poked my cheek, "Are you sure you don't care? You might not see us again for months."

"I do care about that, just not who I'm marrying. I don't know them. They are just strangers to me."

Shane sighed, "Alright, but why are you wearing a dress so early in the morning? The princes aren't going to be here for another few hours."

I thought back to my conversation with Mrs. Williams, "Mrs. Williams said I need to get used to wearing heels in a dress. I haven't worn a dress or heels for years."

My brother laughed, "Oh, poor you. You have to wear heels and a dress. Hahaha."

Elbowing him in the ribs, I glared at him, "Yeah, yeah, whatever. You're lucky your a guy and don't have to wear dresses and heels."

Shane smirked, "Yep, all I have to do is slip on a tux and I'll be fine, unlike most girls who have to spend hours just to look good for a few hours long event."

Rolling my eyes, I sighed, "Yeah, life's not fair."

He told me, "Oh, before I forget, happy birthday little sis."

I nodded, "Thanks, Shane," and continued eating.

After breakfast, I took off the dress and heels. I swapped it for my tunic, pants, and regular shoes, oh, this felt so much better than the dress.

Quickly getting to the training area, letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding, this was a place where the soldiers, my brothers, and I trained. This place made me feel relaxed and at peace.

The soldiers greeted me with a nod, I waved at them and quickly made it to where my brothers were sparring against each other.

I greeted them, "Hello, brothers."

Kieran smiled, "Hello little sister, happy birthday."

Arthur slapped his forehead, "It's your birthday? Oh, I forgot, sorry sis, happy birthday."

I rolled my eyes, "Yeah, yeah, you forgot because you're getting old."

Arthur poked my cheek, "I'm not old, I'm only 25."

Gasping in horror, I acted shocked, "So old! How are you still alive?"

He rolled his eyes, he got me in a headlock and noogie my head.

Breaking out of his headlock, I glared at him.

Shane and Kieran were laughing. I sighed, boys are so annoying. Ugh.

Kieran my second oldest brother was the General of the army, and Arthur was also a General, I was the Lieutenant general, Shane was a Major general.

Our training consists of, stretching, then a 2-mile run, after running we stretched again before, doing a little bit of calisthenics, then 150 sit-ups, after that 150 lunges, 200 push-ups, and then 200 air squats. We took a few water breaks after a few exercises.

We trained and spared against each other with our preferred weapons for a few hours, after that it was another 2-mile run.

My brothers and I had training on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. Then on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, we had tutors.

Training with my brothers was the best way to pass time for me, disarming them was the best feeling ever.

Every time we finished training for the day. We were always sweaty and tired. After we all took showers, we went to the dining room to eat dinner.

When we all had sat down, my father told us, "Everyone, it is Edith's 18th birthday, we have a cake prepared for you, Edith, after dinner and a present. Oh and an hour or so after dinner, cake, and presents, the Night Kingdom princes will be here shortly."

I sighed, ugh, great, my feature husband was going to show up in an hour or two. I'm thinking that with very heavy sarcasm if you can't tell.

Amanda asked me, with that sweet smile she always had, "Oh, happy birthday Edith! Aren't you happy, Edith? You're getting married to one of the princes."

"As happy as I ever will be getting married to a random stranger," I muttered.

Amanda raised an eyebrow, "I hear the Night Kingdom princes are really hot. I mean, they are vampires after all."

I made a face at Amanda, "Eww, I don't care about what they look like, that doesn't matter to me. They are still strangers."

All my sisters stared at me, Ashlen said, "After dinner, we need to talk." She looked to her twin, Ashley nodded back, "We do."

Looking at my sisters, I gave them a confused look, "What? Talk about what?"

All three of my sister shared a look, then they nodded at each other.

I sighed, "You guys are so weird."

We finished dinner and dad ordered the servants to bring in the cake and the present.

Dad handed me the present, "Here you go, sweetie. I hope you like it."

I smiled and opened the present, it was a beautiful necklace, "I love it, thank you, Dad."

My father smiled, "I'm glad you like it, it is a gift form both your mother and me."

"Thanks, Mom, I love it."

She nodded, smiling, "That's good to hear, sweetie. Now, time to cut your cake."

After the cake and my present, my sisters dragged me to Ashely's room, I said, "Wait, I need to go put my dress and heels back on."

My sisters sighed, "We're coming with you."

I raised an eyebrow, "Why? I don't need any help, you guys should just wait here. I'll be back in a minute."

Ashlen and Ashley shook their heads, "Nope if we let you go alone, you might run away."

Amanda agreed, "And we cannot have that happen."

I sighed, "Fine, whatever."

We all hurried to my room. When we got there, they shut the door behind me.

I quickly, but carefully, slipped on the dress and gently put on my heels, "Okay, I'm done."

My sisters stared at me, "You're done? What about makeup?"

Shaking my head, I held up my hands, "Nope, I don't need makeup, I don't like it, nor do I want it."

The twins narrowed their eyes, uh-oh, I knew that look, backing away, "No, no, I said I don't need it."

They loomed over me with evil smiles, I curled into a ball.

Five minutes later, I was sitting on my vanity chair and all three of my sisters were doing my makeup. After they were done my face felt a little heavy and crusty. I looked into the mirror, my lips were red, my eyes appeared wider and bigger, my cheekbones were more defined. I looked completely different.

Ashlen asked, "So, do you like it?"

I shrugged, "It looks nice, but now my face feels heavy and a little dry."

Ashley said, "You'll get used to it, you look nice."

Amanda nodded, "You do look beautiful, you always do." She smiled and said, "Okay, now time to talk."

I sighed, "Why do we need to talk? What do we need to talk about?"

My sisters looked at each other then at me, "BOYS!!" They all shouted.

Confused yet again, I asked, "Uhh, why?"

Amanda said, "Because you're about to leave with your future husband in an hour and we haven't talked about them yet."

I sighed, "What is there to talk about? We don't even know their names or what they look like or anything about them, except for their gender and where they come from."

Ashley and Ashlen raised their hands, "We know their names."

Amanda smiled, "Oh well, do tell."

Why is it that my sister is more excited about this than me?

Ashlen said, "The eldest prince's name is Mark."

Her twin told us, "The second prince is named William."

They both said, "And the third prince is named Easton."

I asked, "What is their last name?"

Ashlen shrugged, "Astor."

Ashley nodded, "Yep."

I sighed, "How do you guys know this, and I don't?"

Ashley and Ashlen shrugged, "We snuck into Dad's office. He had a letter titled 'The Marriage Between My Daughter And One Of Your Sons' or something like that. Turns out, Edith, you were promised to the Night Kingdom since the day you were born."

I furrowed my brows, "Why me?" (Confused because father allowed us to choose when and who we marry. The only rule was, at least one of us had to have a child.)

Amanda shrugged, "Probably because you're the youngest."

"What's that suppose to mean, Amanda?"

She held up her hands as if at gunpoint, "Nothing offensive, I mean like maybe at the time Dad made the arrangement you were born and he thought, perfect, my little baby should be married to princes of a faraway kingdom."

I pointed out, "They aren't that far away, they are our a neighboring kingdom."

She rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Nobody has been in that kingdom and ever come out again. Well, humans anyway. Those are the rumors I've heard."

Poking her, I rolled my eyes, "They are just rumors, they might not be true."

She smacked my hand away, "Stop poking me, but the rumors could be true, you never know."

Just as I was about to reply, there was a knock on the door, "Your Highnesses, the princes are here. His Majesty wants you to come down."

I sighed, "Well, I guess we should go downstairs and meet them."

Helping Amanda up, I muttered, "Let's go."

We made it down to where the princes were.

My father introduced us, "Ahh, here are my dear daughters, Amanda, Ashlen, Ashley, and Edith Lexington. Edith is to be your future bride." Dad turned toward us, "Edith, one of these princes will be your future husband, Mark, William, and Easton Astor."

I gave them all a small smile and a small wave, "Hello, nice to meet you."

They were all extremely handsome, Mark's hair was slightly different in color, a little lighter than his brother's hair, his eyes were like deep pools of water, you could drown in them, they were sapphire blue. His lips were curled in an arrogant smile. He bowed a little, "Hello, there princess, it is nice to meet you as well."

Blushing a little, I smiled at him.

William had the darkest hair color of them all, his eyes were slightly lighter than Mark's, they looked so cold as if frozen. He looked expressionless, "It is nice to meet you too, Princess Edith." He bowed.

I smiled slightly, "Glad to hear it."

Easton's hair was just slightly darker than Mark's, his eyes were the brightest and they looked so friendly, he had a sweet smile on his face, on you felt like you could trust, "Hello, Princess Edith, nice to meet you." He bowed.

"Nice to meet you, too."

My father cleared his throat, "Edith, who do you choose to be your future husband, dear?"

I bit my lip, do I have to? I really didn't want to choose any of them, right now or maybe even ever.

Looking at my father, I asked, "Father, I don't want to marry any of them." I peeked up at him, "Please understand, Dad, they are strangers to me. I don't want to marry someone I've barely known for 30 seconds."

Watching his face, I expected his expression to be mad or at least a little disappointed, but instead, he smiled at me and patted my head, "Of course, dear. What do you propose we do then?"

I bit my lip again, "How about, I get to know the princes a little better before I agree to marry any of them?" I turned towards them, "What do you guys think?"

Mark shrugged, "I don't mind."

William shrugged, looking indifferent, "It doesn't matter to me."

Easton smiled, "Sure, that works for me."

I smiled, "Great, now that that is settled-"

William cut me off, "Princess Edith, sorry for interrupting, but if we are going to get to know you better before one of us marries you, you will still have to live in the Night Kingdom with us."

Mark thought for a second and nodded, "Yes, William brings up a good point, you will have to live with us."

I asked them, "Why can't you stay here?"

Easton rubbed the back of his nack, "Well, it would be dangerous for us to live near so many humans, we need to feed daily, and we do not like the sun, it gives us headaches and severe sunburns. Your castle, although it is very nice, does not have what we need to be able to function very well."

I sighed, they had a point, and I was to marry one of them so I need to get used to their sleep schedule some time, "Okay, then it's settled, I will not be marrying any of you until I get to know you better and I will be moving to your kingdom. Dad, do you agree to this?"

He sighed, looking remorseful, "I agree to it, but I don't like it, I don't want my little girl moving away."

I rolled my eyes, smiling, "Dad, I'm 18, and I will be married soon," I hugged him.

He patted my back sighing, "But you are still my little princess."

My father cleared his throat, "Prince Mark, Prince William, and Prince Easton, when shall you depart?"

Mark told us, "When Edith is ready and has said goodbye to her family, we will take our leave."

I nodded, "I go pack."

Easton said to me, "You only need to bring stuff you really need, the rest we will provide."

"Okay, thank you for telling me."

My father said, "I will get everyone here so we can say goodbye."

I quickly made it to my room, Mrs. Williams walked in shortly after I did, "Dear, do you need help?"

"Yes please."

Picking out a few of my favorite tunic and pants, plus most of my training gear and Mrs. Williams put in a dress or two, just in case. We closed the trunk and locked it. I hugged her and said my farewell to her. It saddened me to be away from her.

I made it down to the gates, my maids were helping me carry my trunk, I thanked them and they put it in the Night Kingdom's carriage.

Walking over to my family, I apologized, "Sorry for taking so long."

My father smiled, "Come, dear. Say your farewells to your family."

I hugged my brothers and sisters. The last people I hugged were my mother and father. When I pulled away, my father was sniffling and my mother was patting his shoulder, she smiled, "Have a safe trip, sweetie, we love you."

Wiping away a stray tear, "I love you guys, too."

The brothers lead me to the carriage and helped me in, Easton, William, and Mark got in with me. The carriage was designed for 6 people so it wasn't cramped at all, there was about a foot of space between each of us.

I watched my family's silhouettes grow smaller and smaller the further we got from them through the small window the carriage had.

Smiling at Mark, William, and Easton, "So, how long is this ride going to take?"

Mark said, "Give or take about 6 hours."

I nodded, then asked, "So, do any of you fence?"