The princesses looked around my meager place and decided to sit together on the couch. The red-haired one...Blaise... openly gaped at the room.
“Is this really where you live?”
I ignored her tone and went about deciding what to bring.
“What? It’s a fair question,” she continued in her accent that screamed, not from Elder.
“While it isn’t as impressive as the tree village, I built this place completely on my own over three winters ago. Everything from the walls to the couch you are sitting on, I built. So, sorry, princess, if it offends you.”
I went back to looking around but soon decided I didn’t need to take anything with me. I planned to travel as an eagle to fly there quickly, so it wasn’t like I could carry much anyway.
Grabbing a chair from the table, I pulled it over to sit facing the two girls.
“We didn’t mean to offend you,” Azia told me.
I shrugged, neither agreeing or disagreeing with her. I was used to the other kingdoms talking about us. We didn’t use the latest technology, but that didn’t mean we were backward. The people of Elder chose to live this way. I was beyond certain neither girl had lived a moon cycle in the woods alone, yet almost every citizen of Elder could do that without breaking a sweat. Different kingdoms valued different things. It didn’t make one wrong or right, but just different.
Red was born for her job with dealing with other kingdoms. I could barely stand others and their judgment of us. The people of Elder were happy with their lives, so why did it matter to anyone else?
“Let’s get on with it. Why are you here?” I would have rather kept waiting and let them talk, but I didn’t have time. I needed to talk with Prince Fallon and find out where he came from. He was the best lead I had, and I was going to act on it once I got these girls on their way.
“How much does Red tell you about the other kingdoms?” Blaise asked. “Since you aren’t her successor. That was the girl there, Sera, correct?”
“I mainly keep out of it as much as I can, but I have met some of the official leaders and know the basics. It isn’t much interest to me. As you said, I’m not ruling the kingdom, ever.”
The princess nodded.
“Three months ago, things started to change in Draconis.” Azia said.
The weather was strange, people were fighting, the dragons...well the dragons felt a shift in energy. Then my mother went back to sleep. We haven’t been able to wake her. I decided to head to Urbis, but—”
“She found me first because we started to have problems too. My mother turned back into a mermaid,” Blaise interjected.
“Before we could go to Urbis, we heard there were changes here, and we came to see if it was all related,” Azia continued.
“And it seems we are. I didn’t imagine having a sister but a brother too. It’s amazing,” Blaise added in apparent delight.
“Brother?” I asked. What in the world were they talking about?
“Our eyes. Don’t you see that you are just like us?”
Okay, they were right about that, but it didn’t make me their brother. And how were they sisters? They looked nothing alike.
“I thought twins, but now I see it’s triplets.”
I was getting dizzy looking between the two as they kept throwing information at me that made no sense.
“We don’t have triplets in Elder. Twins occasionally, but anything more than that doesn’t happen unless it’s in animals,” I replied. I really didn’t know what they were talking about.
“So, you were born here?”
I bit my lip. These two girls were strangers and princesses at that. They knew nothing of me or our ways. I wasn’t really sure I should be giving them any information. The blonde seemed to understand my hesitation.
“We were both adopted. I might be Queen Briar Rose’s daughter, but she didn’t give birth to me. Blaise is also adopted. One night over eighteen years ago, we were given to our mothers. We know nothing more. Are you eighteen years old also?”
“Yes, I’m eighteen winters.”
“Which would make us triplets,” Blaise added excitedly. “I can’t believe we found another golden-eyed person here in Elder of all places.”
“Or I could be your cousin for all you know,” I added, but in reality, any relation was more than I could have ever expected to find. And they were right about the eyes. I had never seen my eye color before, except on the two of them.
“We need to head to Urbis together and see if we can find out what is happening,” Azia explained.
I shook my head no to that.
“But we need to stop at Floris first. If this is going on all over, we have to check on Princess Lilian. I need to be sure she’s okay.”
“Floris first,” Azia relented.
I shook my head as the pair of them bickered.
“I’m not part of your little adventure, no matter what my eyes look like. I mean, come on. I look nothing like either of you two in any other aspect.”
Azia was tall for a woman, but not huge. She was willowy, and despite the purple hooded jacket she wore and the sword at her side, not to mention the dragon she carried around with her like a designer purse, she still looked like a princess. The shorter one, Blaise, was worse. Her red hair didn’t look anything like Azia’s and her wide eyes even less. Blaise also had more curves. Side by side, they were nothing alike beyond the color of their eyes. My black hair and olive skin tone was a stark contrast to the fair-skinned princesses. I saw nothing of me in them.
While it would have been a great dream to find family, I didn’t think I was theirs. It was impossible. We lived in different kingdoms. And while the two of them were almost neighbors, I was far from it. Who would have three babies, drop two off together, and then take the third halfway across the world?
Princess Azia cocked her head to the side as she studied me. She had that look like Red that I recognized all too well. She was thinking. I didn’t need to be analyzed by a princess. I was pretty sure Urbis had nothing to offer me. I needed a cure for the curse the werewolves had, not for sleeping like Queen Briar Rose.
“What would convince you to come with us? I’m more than certain you are meant to be with us. I can’t give you an argument why, I just know it,” Azia finally told me.
“The people of Elder are my home, and I need to help them. I understand wanting to help your mothers. I need to help my wolves. But I don’t think we’re going in the same direction unless you can tell me where you came from before you were adopted.” That was what I needed to know; what I needed to ask Prince Fallon.
“We don’t know, but we think Urbis,” Azia replied. “That’s why I want to go there, among other reasons.”
“But we are going to visit Princess Lillian in Floris first to make sure she is ok. Blaise added, shooting a look at Azia. “I know Lillian isn’t related to us, but she is a friend of mine. I need to know she is alright.”
“I’m sorry that you’ve come so far for nothing, ladies, but I have my own trip to deal with. Before you came, I was just about to head out to Arboria to see Prince Fallon.
“Why would you want to see Prince Fallon?” Azia eyed me curiously.
“I want to find out about...”
“Your birth?” she answered before I could finish the sentence. “That’s pretty much what we are doing too. What if I told you that after we check on Princess Lilian, we could go to Prince Fallon and get the information you need?” Azia suggested. “Then, it would be worthwhile for you to come with us.”
That was a bit enticing. I could look along the way for more answers, and fresh ideas wouldn’t hurt anything. But as I looked at the two disheveled princesses, I wasn’t sure how many moon cycles that would take. It wasn’t like my friends would get better while I was gone. The moon would still call to them. Worse even, it meant I would be traveling between kingdoms at a slow pace and protecting the princesses. They probably just needed me as a bodyguard.
“As enticing a
s it is to be your male escort through the villages, I still have to decline. How long has it been since you left home? One, two, six moon cycles? I can’t be away from Elder for seasons. And I don’t have time to travel around protecting two princesses, no offense.”
Azia smiled at me—like genuinely smiled.
“None taken. Let’s make a wager.”
“A deal?”
“Yes, how about we have a little sword fight competition. If I win, you join us going to Floris and then Arboria, and Urbis. That should take three months maximum. If you win, then we leave and let you go on your way.”
Was she serious? She was thin and a princess, how was she going to fight me equally? Was she setting herself up to fail? Or was she? I knew very little about the next generation of the monarchies of the kingdoms because they were all within a few season cycles of my own age. From what I heard of Prince Fallon, he did nothing but party and lived lavishly. While a bit dirty, I could tell the princesses both lived fancy lives also.
“Okay, deal.”
Azia went outside, and I followed behind. Blaise stood in the doorway to my place, and the dragon landed on the ground beside her. I really wanted to try being a dragon. Was flying as one different than a bird?
“You like her?” Azia asked.
“I’ve never seen one before,” I replied honestly.
I wasn’t about to tell her I was going to transform into one as soon as I could get away from them just for a little bit, see if my magic extended into animals that came from other places
“She won’t stop our fight if I get the upper hand?”
Azia smiled. “No, she’ll stay out of it.”
“Good.” I knew perfectly well my wolf friend would jump in a dual. It was the nature of being a wolf. We watched each other’s backs.
I took up my sword.
“Ready when you are.”
Azia took a sword from her hilt. It was beautiful with the hilt shaped like a dragon with ruby eyes. I had never seen workmanship like that before. Such a typical thing for royalty. I was sure she thought with her better, magnificent sword, she’d beat my plain Elder sword. That was probably the main reason I didn’t know the next generation. After meeting all of them at some point in my childhood with Red, I knew from a very young age; I didn’t fit in. I didn’t remember meeting these two princesses.
I waited for Azia to make the first move, but she just stood there. Why would she bargain with me with a sword fight if she didn’t really want to fight?
“Are we starting?” I asked her.
I couldn’t just strike at a princess, no matter the reason. I did have a moral code. I kept my sword up. I could do this all day if she wanted.
Her sword came towards mine in a slow arc, and I easily blocked it. Her hit was either testing me, or she was wielding a sword too big for her. That often happened with women when we first started to train them in Elder. They thought a bigger sword meant they would be able to keep up. That wasn’t how it had to be done. You didn’t need to be bigger with the most muscles; you needed to be smarter. Someone must have missed teaching the princess that lesson.
I made a quicker swing at her, and she just managed to block it. This wasn’t a fair fight, but at least I’d be on my way. Two more hits, and I’d have the sword from her hand. I moved in to swing again and didn’t notice what was happening until she had taken me down on my back, and my hand was trapped to the ground with her boot.
Azia grinned at me from her position above me. She wasn’t the weak princess she pretended to be. She had skills.
I smiled as she offered me a hand to stand. It wasn’t often I was beaten, but she was going to be a fun challenge to train with. If I was going to have to go around from kingdom to kingdom, I was going to learn a thing or two or three.
As our hands met, I felt the tingles of magic slide through me. Azia smiled more. Was this what she was talking about?
“While you don’t want to admit it, Castiel, I know we’re connected.”
Okay, she was right. I could feel that. My magic hummed beneath the surface like it was happy they had found me. Maybe wandering around the kingdoms would be helpful, after all. As she said, I was sure I was connected to these two princesses. It was time for a new adventure and answers for my people. I wasn’t coming home until I helped them, and I was certain I would be a whole new man when I did. It was time to say goodbye to Elder for a little bit and hello to the rest of the kingdoms.
A note from the author
The Kingdom of Fairytales authors hope you enjoyed this new way of reading. We don’t think that a series has ever been set with one chapter a day thought a whole year before and we hope we did it justice.
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After the Happily Ever After…
There is more to these stories. You want to know what happens next right? Fast forward eighteen years…
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PREQUEL
SLEEPING BEAUTY
1. Queen of Dragons
2. Heiress of Embers
3. Throne of Fury
4. Goddess of Flames
LITTLE MERMAID
5. Queen of Mermaids
6. Heiress of the Sea
7. Throne of Change
8. Goddess of Water
RED RIDING HOOD
9. King of Wolves
10. Heir of the Curse
11. Throne of Night
12. God of Shifters
RAPUNZEL
13. King of Devotion
14. Heir of Thorns
15. Throne of Enchantment
16. God of Loyalty
RUMPELSTILTSKIN
17. Queen of Unicorns
18. Heiress of Gold
19. Throne of Sacrifice
20. Goddess of Loss
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
21. King of Beasts
22. Heir of Beauty
23. Throne of Betrayal
24. God of Illusion
ALADDIN
25. Queen of the Sun
26. Heiress of Shadows
27. Throne of the Phoenix
28. Goddess of Fire
CINDERELLA
29. Queen of Song
30. Heiress of Melody
31. Throne of Symphony
32. Goddess of Harmony
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
33. Queen of Clockwork
34. Heiress of Delusion
35. Throne of Cards
36. Goddess of Hearts
WIZARD OF OZ
37. King of Traitors
38. Heir of Fugitives
39. Throne of Emeralds
40. God of Storms
SNOW WHITE
41. Queen of Reflections
42. Heiress of Mirrors
43. Throne of Wands
44. Goddess of Magic
PETER PAN
45. Queen of Skies
46. Heiress of Stars
47. Throne of Feathers
48. Goddess of Air
URBIS
49. Kingdom of Royalty
50. Kingdom of Power
51. Kingdom of Fairytales
52. Kingdom of Ever After
BOXSETS
Azia
Blaise
Castiel
Deon
Eliana
Fallon
Gaia
Halia
Ivy
Jakon
Kelis
Lyric
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These books would not be written without a great many people. Here is our team:
Many thanks to those who have made this possible.
Thank you to Rhi Parkes without whom, this series would never have come about.
Thanks to all the authors.
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About J.A. Armitage
J.A lives in a total fantasy world (because reality is boring right?) When she's not writing all the crazy fun in her head, she can be found eating cake, designing pretty pictures and hanging upside down from the tallest climbing frame in the local playground while her children look on in embarrassment. She's travelled the world working as everything from a banana picker in Australia to a Pantomime clown, has climbed to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro and the bottom of the Grand Canyon and once gave birth to a surrogate baby for a friend of hers.
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Castiel: Son of Red Riding Hood (Kingdom of Fairytales Boxset Book 3) Page 31