King Phillip's POV

I sighed in impatience as I stared out the window, my hands fiddling with the blue tunic I was wearing. "Phillip! Stop playing with your tunic, you are going to wrinkle it!" That would be my sister Scarlett. I shot her a lopsided grin as I raised my hands as a gesture of surrender before saying "Sorry, sister dearest. But pray, do tell what else am I supposed to do?" "Well if you seek a release from boredom than you may wind my wool as I knit socks for your future nephew," she responded, hand cradling her bump as we spoke. I grinned in excitement as I thought of my future nephew. Scarlett was 6 months pregnant and despite me insisting that I could handle it, she demanded to be allowed to come on the journey.

"Have you decided on a name yet?" asked Leanne, my youngest sister, offering Scarlett a cookie as she spoke. "No. Charles and I have a few options in mind though," answered Scarlett carefully. "Are you seriously not going to tell us the gender of the child, or the name?" questioned my younger brother Edward. Scarlett nodded, blue eyes alight as she did so. Edward groaned and tugged on his raven hair in mock-frustration. Leanne giggled at him before frowning at me. "What? Why are you frowning at me?" I asked. "Because your crown is all crooked!" scolded Leanne leaning over to fix it, brown hair brushing my nose as she did so. Upon fixing my crown she smoothed my blond curls before smiling, apparently satisfied with her work. I shot her a grateful smile before asking "Are we any closer to Zariya?" "Not any closer than 5 minutes ago which was the last time you asked," answered Edward, teasing grin present on his face. I scowled in response.

"I know you are worried about this trade agreement Phil, but you don't need to be. You have been planning this since your coronation," soothed Leanne. "The only thing you need to be worried about is the royal family. The King and Queen rarely interfere in trade agreements, preferring to leave it to the Crown Prince and his sister. The Crown Prince is notorious for being handsome and silver tongued. His sister is the opposite. She is famed for her beauty as well as her harsh words," added Edward with a frown on his face. "But you needn't worry Phil, everyone who meets you adores you," said Scarlett shooting a glare at Edward and smile at me. "Who knows? Perhaps Alynthi will find itself a Queen on this trip," teased Leanne. "I don't know about a queen, but I hope we will have a trade partner and a good relationship with Zariya. The tension between the 2 kingdoms has been on a steady rise for the past few years and the last thing I want right now is a war," I said, worry clouding my mind.

As soon as I finished my sentence the carriage drew to an abrupt stop. "We must be here," said Scarlett. I nodded and took a deep breath to gather my courage before I stepped out of the carriage.

Princess  Cordelia's POV

I furrowed my brow in concentration as I ran my fingers through the numerous gowns on the rack. "Princess Cordelia, we have been waiting for you to choose a gown for 2 hours! Just choose one!" exclaimed my Lady-in-waiting Daphne. Had it been any other Lady-in-waiting they would have been relieved of their duties immediately, but I had known Daphne since we were mere babes in our mothers arms. I shook my head at her impatience and said "Patience is a virtue Daphne." "One that I do not possess your majesty, besides the King of Alynthi and his siblings will be arriving very soon and we have not even started on your hair and makeup!" I hummed in agreement before finally settling on a silvery-blue corseted ballgown. It was simple yet ethereal and the slight gold embellishments showed the wealth of my kingdom, without seeming too flashy. The skirts were made of a fine gossamer fabric and it complimented my body nicely.

Once the dress was chosen, Daphne sat me down in a chair and immediately began working on my hair, gently pulling it back into an elegant up do. As she did so she grumbled about how lucky I was that she had decided to get ready ahead of me. "Daphne, what do you know about the King of Alynthi and his siblings?" I asked. "The youngest of the royal family is Her Royal Highness Princess Leanne. She is said to be very kind and is beloved by her people. She is also said to be the most friendly. The second youngest is His Royal Highness Prince Edward, he is very well known for being an impeccable swordsman as well as a very wise judge. There are rumours about some scuffle between him and his brother for the throne but it was dealt with before it became a huge scandal. The second oldest Is Queen Scarlett who is married to King Charles of Therondia. They are expecting their first child at the moment." "And what of King Phillip?" I mused as I slid on a gold bracelet. "Oh for Pete's sake! Give me a minute to catch my breath after that long monologue," huffed Daphne, tucking a piece of her curly black hair behind her ear as she spoke. "He is famed for his good looks and courage in battle. Apparently he has been planning this trade deal since his coronation. Everyone who meets him has glowing reports about him."

I frowned at that last statement as I examined my makeup. "Why does your majesty look displeased about the news about King Phillip?" questioned Daphne as she put my crown on my head. "Well from what you said, he seems perfect, and perfect people are always hiding something," I smiled. "Whatever you are planning Delia, I don't think its a good idea," warned Daphne. "I just want to make sure he has no plans to harm our kingdom. Besides, you know me Daphne, when have I ever caused any trouble?" I teased. "A better question would be when haven't you caused any trouble," grumbled my lady in waiting as she laced up the back of my dress. "Who will be greeting them?" I asked. "2 ministers as royal protocol calls for," answered Daphne without even looking up from the intricate laces that were being done up. "Send Solaris, Captain of the royal guard and Naseem Captain of Expeditions instead. They outrank ministers so it won't be seen as an insult and they are our dearest friends so they will give us honest first impressions of the royal family," I commanded. "Delia! You are sending the two most cheeky members of court to greet one of the most important envoys we have received this year!" exclaimed Daphne. I simply smiled and attempted to make myself look as innocent as possible. "I'll let them know," sighed Daphne as she stepped back to admire the finished product that was my final look. As I examined myself in the mirror, I had to admit that she had done a good job. I grinned at my reflection as Daphne exited the room. "King Phillip," I mused, "what exactly are you up to?"

Prince Edward's POV

Phillip shot us a smile that looked more like a grimace before stepping out of the carriage, documents in hand. I followed and extended my arm to Scarlett. "Careful," I muttered as she descended the carriage. "I am pregnant Edward, not an invalid," huffed my sister. I sighed. Arguing with regular Scarlett is an impossible task in and of itself, but arguing with a pregnant Scarlett is a death wish. Once Scarlett was safely on the ground I turned around to offer my arm to Leanne, who gratefully accepted before placing a sweet kiss on my cheek. Once Leanne was also safely on the ground, I turned around to check on Phil, who still looked incredibly nervous. "Honestly Phil, you are as white as a sheet! I have half a mind to put you back in the carriage!" exclaimed Scarlett. Phil chuckled.

Our conversation was interrupted by 2 men walking over and bowing to us. "Your majesties, I am Solaris Ashford, Captain of the Royal Guard of Zariya," said the taller of the two, his warm brown eyes surveying us all. "And I am Naseem Ashford, Captain of Expeditions," said the second one, an angelic smile on his face. "It is an honour to meet you, I am King Phillip Albertine of Alynthi, and these are my siblings Queen Scarlett, Prince Edward and Princess Leanne," spoke Phillip in a tone of voice that I liked to call his King voice. I had to give him credit, for a man who was pale as a sheet a few minutes ago, he looked every inch the king he was now. His jaw was set and there was not an emotion clearly present in his bright blue eyes. "Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't Zariyan protocol call for cabinet ministers to greet us?" I asked. "It was Princess Cordelia's request that we accompany you to the castle. She seemed to think that  you might enjoy having guides who know more about Zariya," answered Naseem, wearing a smile which suddenly seemed less angelic and more mischievous. I raised an an eyebrow but said nothing.

"Your Majesties, we should probably begin our journey. Our royal family possesses many wonderful traits but patience is not one of them," said Solaris in a nonchalant tone. I blinked in surprise, surely it was treacherous to speak of the royal family in such a way. Solaris let out a laugh at our bewildered expressions before saying "You needn't worry about us losing our heads Your Majesty, we have known the Royal family since they were born." "How do you know them?" asked Leanne as we began to walk towards the carriage prepared for us. "Our father is one of the King's most trusted advisors so we practically grew up with the Crown Prince and princess," explained Naseem in a soft tone. I noticed how both Solaris and Naseem spoke of the Prince and Princess with a brotherly fondness and drew the conclusion that they were obviously very close. "What is His Majesty like?" asked Scarlett. "Crown Prince Louis has a strong moral compass and knows how to get what he wants," said Solaris. "And what of her Majesty?" asked Leanne. "That depends on who you ask," responded Naseem. "And if we asked you?" "I would say that she is the heart of Zariya." Something in his tone told us not to ask any more questions about her. The rest of the carriage ride was in silence.

"Your Majesties, we are here," announced Solaris. I stared in awe at the castle. It was brick, but you could barely see it under the large amounts of flowers that were entwined around its walls. There were multiple windows and if you peeped through them no two scenes would be the same. Noise surrounded us and young children were playing in front of the castle gates. A huge fountain was the courtyard centrepiece and there were many flower bushes on the way to the huge doors. As we walked towards the Castle doors I admired the bird feeding tables that were cleverly hidden among the greenery. Upon reaching the huge palace doors, Solaris raised his fist and pounded 3 times on the door, before it was opened by a contraption of some sort. Wide eyed and in awe of all we had seen so far, we entered the Zariyan Castle