"YOUR BODY guards?" Coralia was staring at Andorra like she had multiple heads. "But how? And why?"

"Our daddy dearest thought the Princess needed some help. And of course, who better to protect her than us?" Callum flashed his teeth, but it felt threatening. Andorra knew they would die if she did, but she wasn't convinced that either of them would try hard enough to keep her alive. And they certainly weren't her friends.

"Why are you taking this so well?" Aihfie growled to Callum. "This is the worst punishment for something we didn't even do!"

Callum wagged his finger. "Tsk tsk, sister. We have the most important job in Anlithamy. Protecting the baby Princess from all the big, scary monsters."

Andorra felt heat slide into her cheeks. "Shut up."

Callum's grinned dropped in an instant. "Make me, Princess. Oh wait... you can't do anything. Because whether or not you like it, we're stuck to you. We aren't going anywhere."

This was quite possibly the worst day of Andorra's life. Well, okay, not entirely, but it did suck. She turned to Coralia. "Where are Bort and Hans?"

Coralia looked over her shoulder at the empty square. Everyone had scattered instantly when the shadow had erupted from Aihfie. "They took cover in one of the stores. I made them leave. I wasn't... I wasn't sure if it was safe, and you were stuck in there. I couldn't leave you."

Andorra felt her chest warm at Coralia's words. Her actions were loud and clear: she cared.

"So, how can we change this?" Coralia pointed between Callum and Aihfie. "Unless Prince Puck bound them for life?"

Andorra shook her head. "No, he said once I find new ones, these two goons will be released. Finding new ones can't be that hard, right?"

Coralia looked down at her shoes. Callum and Aihfie looked at each other, not a word between them. Andorra felt a sense of helplessness sink down inside of her. "So, it is hard, is what you're telling me."

"Guards are... trained beings. Fae that have been bred and born to guard. Their master of sorts can bind them to a person. But, normal people don't have masters. Parents can count as a master, like Prince Puck with these two. But, unless the person has a master, there can be no binding."

Andorra let Coralia's words sink in. "They need a master? That seems a little like slavery to me."

Coralia shook her head. "No, not like that. More like... master in the sense of the word boss. Like, their boss could have the ability to bind them to you. So, we have to find guards available and have them bound by their boss."

"So all of Prince Puck's guards were bound to him?"

Coralia nodded, but it was Callum who spoke. "No fool would hire a guard without binding them first. In this world, it would be too easy to backstab the person you're guarding. Many Princes and Princesses have been slaughtered by guards working for the wrong team."

A shiver ran down Andorra's spine. "Probably why our dad bound us to you," Aihfie spat. "He knew we wouldn't kill ourselves for you. Ruthless, selfish bastard."

Understanding was donning on Andorra. "And he knew it would be a process. He knew it would take a while. That's... that's why he wanted me to have motivation to start looking. Because he knew it would be a lengthy process."

Callum snorted. "Don't give my father that much credit. He isn't the good guy you suddenly think he is. Our father wants us to spy on you, Princess. Every move you make goes back to our dear daddy, so be careful what you do."

The threat was not missed, but Andorra ignored it. What else could she do? It was clear to her that this world would chew her up and spit her out before they even considered her an equal. That didn't surprise her about Prince Puck.

What had surprised her was the fact that Noah had saved her. Was the only motive behind that to stop a war from happening?

"It's not easy, but there is a camp. Up in the northern mountains of the Winter Court. It's for those who graduated Hornwell and wanted to become an apprentice in guarding. The tricky part will be convincing them." Coralia was looking off into the distance, like she was trying to remember the semantics of it all.

"Why is convincing them hard?"

"Because no one likes you." Aihfie hissed out. "Haven't you realized yet, Princess? You were better off being human than being here. We don't want you as our Queen. Most didn't want your parents, either."

There was real fire and hatred in her voice, and she wanted to flinch, but Noah's words echoed in her mind: The moment you let them see how you feel, the moment they figure out how to kill you.

Andorra wouldn't let them see how those words hurt her. Deep down, she was still that eighteen year old human girl.

"Well, that is between you and Cornomous. Now, how do we go about finding the camp?"

Aihfie, snubbed by that remark, crossed her arms and looked away. Which, to Andorra, didn't really matter. Aihfie could hate her all she wanted.

"Not this weekend. We need a plan, like a real plan. And an alibi. It will be a longer trip than just a day, and we still have school. This week, we'll begin packing and storing food. And we'll need weapons. The hike into the northern mountains will not be easy."

"I think you're forgetting transportation. Getting to the Winter Court from here isn't easy." Callum crossed his arms, sounding bored with this conversation, but it was the first time Andorra had felt like she had a purpose. A plan. Finding new guards would at least put her away from Aihfie and Callum, who had questionable morals and definitely dangerous motives.

Both were friends of Anders. A clear enemy.

Coralia thought on this for a long, long moment. Then, she blew out a sigh. "Travelling to the Northern Mountains is a journey that will have to wait. We have another break in about eight weeks time. That break would be the perfect time to go unannounced, find you some guards, and head back to school."

Eight weeks felt like a lifetime away. Two months. Andorra wanted to throw up all over the cobblestone, just knowing she'd be stuck with Callum and Aihfie for that much longer. But, Coralia was right.

"And, it'll give you time to work on that convincing speech for why someone should be your guard." Callum was examining his fingernails. "Wouldn't it be a real shame if we travelled all the way there and no one said yes?"

Something in his voice made Andorra pause. He wasn't playing around with that, he was right: she could have to do some convincing. But, she wouldn't be doing it alone. "If you want to stop being my guards, then you'll help me."
Callum didn't even blink at her before showing off his teeth in a snarl. "You'd be careful not to ask for anything, Princess. I am not your friend, nor am I under any obligation to help you out. My job is to make sure you aren't killed. Everything else is going above and beyond." He got up close to Andorra's face, his shadows wrapping around her, slinking beneath her hair and tugging her to him in an almost suffocating way. "And I'll have you know, Princess, that I am not an overachiever when it comes to a useless job like this one."

Andorra felt the hairs on her arm stand on end. Danger, she was in real danger and she could feel it. But, as soon as it was there, it was gone in the next. Callum stepped back, taking his shadows with him, withdrawing back into himself without a second thought.

Andorra then realized why, in the hallway, Jezebel had looked surprised at Callum's warning. "Jezebel knew about the assassination attempt today, didn't she? And so did Anders."

Callum's eye twitched as an answer.

"And you warning me not to go... you weren't supposed to do that, were you? But you did. And Jezebel had looked surprised because... because..."

"Because Anders was in on the assassination." Coralia whispered, stiffening in realization. "Anders tried to kill you today."

Aihfie's jaw dropped. "Why am I never included in anything?"

Andorra gave Aihfie a disgusted look. She was mad she wasn't included in on plans to murder the Princess? Andorra felt like she was going to be sick all over again.

Callum didn't look at his sister. His gaze bore into Andorra's. "You're smarter than they give you credit for, you know. It's too bad you took the warning too late. Could have saved us this entire mess we're now in."

Aihfie turned to her brother, seething. "And you," she jabbed her finger in his chest, "warned her? What's wrong with you?"

Callum's answering grin was danger wrapped in a bow. "Aihfie, when will you learn that playing the long game wins out in every scenario?"

Andorra did not want to know what the long game was. She didn't want to know what Callum planned on doing with her in the long run. The thought alone of what he could do shaked her to the core.

And she was stuck with them. These murderous, scheming siblings who absolutely hated her.

"So, let's focus on the now. The threat is gone for today. Let's continue our shopping, okay? Take our minds off of this. When we get back to Hornwell, then we can dwell on the current state of things. But for now, let's relax." Coralia was practically begging Andorra to go along with it.

And Andorra didn't mind doing just that.

The four of them crossed the square, heading towards the shops that Bort and Hans had disappeared into. The emptiness of the square gave Andorra a sickening feeling in her stomach, because she wondered for the first time what it had looked like to onlookers. A circle of guards. A man with a bow and arrow. A princess screaming. It sent chills down Andorra's spine, just picturing the fear that people must have felt.

Fear because of her. Because she had been too foolish to think about people trying to murder her. Forget the pressures of high school - this was way harder than that. And it was a lot for Andorra to grapple with in that moment, because how could she do this? Prince Puck was right to doubt her.

Andorra was, not for the first time, doubting herself completely. She was a child. A child.

The shop door dinged overhead as they walked in. Warmth rushed to greet them, and the soft glow of what looked to be a bookstore made all worries suddenly ease. This was familiar. This was safe. She spotted Bort and Hans standing by a bookshelf, talking to each other over a comic book. It was so incredibly human for a moment that it stole Andorra's breath away.

"Bort! Hans!" Coralia was weaving towards them, dodging people. "We're safe. Everyone is safe."

Andorra wanted her definition of safe because having Aihfie and Callum as guards didn't make Andorra feel very safe. She shot the siblings a look, noting their clear discomfort in the shop, both of them crossing their arms immediately. On edge, Andorra realized.

"Pray tell, why are they with you?" Hans' voice dropped an octave, a nasty tone replacing his usual snide one. He stiffened immediately. "Don't tell me that Callum was the reason the Princess was almost killed today."

"No, but I'm the reason that she won't be killed in the future," Callum shot back, his voice even nastier than Hans'. "Show some respect for your Princess's guards. I'm the head Guard. Shall I make you bow before royalty?" His cutting grin was sharp, pointed, powerful.

"You're kidding me." Hans looked at Coralia, then at Andorra. "Leelee, tell me he's lying."

Coralia looked down for a moment. "No, he isn't. His father appointed him. Them. Aihfie's stuck with us too."

"I'm sorry, what happened back in the square? Why the fuck are they guards all of a sudden?" Hans put the book he was holding back on the shelf and leaned against it, folding his arms and regarding the siblings with an icy look. "I don't trust either of them."

Andorra scrambled to make Hans understand before a fight broke out in the small shop. Others were already beginning to look at them. "A Winter Court fae tried to assassinate me, okay? Prince Puck happened to be there and he saved me. But, not before berating me on my lack of guards, and before I could even get a word in, he magically brought these two to the square," Andorra gestured to Aihfie and Callum, "and he bound them to me. So you know, if I die, they die. I don't have a choice, Hans. None of us do. So we're going to have to make due until I can get some real guards. That was like, the whole stipulation: these two are my guards until I find real ones to replace them."

"Well, I for one think this is great." Bort smiled at Andorra encouragingly. "It's no secret that Prince Puck's children are skilled fighters. You'll be safe."

Hans rolled his eyes, but he kept quiet. It was a small blessing, Andorra thought. Where Bort was soft and warm, it was clear Hans was sharp and cold. He was dark humor and challenging grins rolled into one.

But, despite those differences, Coralia seemed to trust them both the same. She put her arm gingerly on Hans' arm, forcing him to look at her, and that seemed to bring him down a notch. She said something to him in a low, low tone, and Andorra turned away.

Callum was watching them with narrowed eyes. Analyzing eyes. Aihfie was too busy picking at her nails to even look up at anyone. "You two are quite possibly the least observant guards."

Aihfie did look up then, her mouth curdling into a sneer. "Watch how you talk to me Princess."

There was an or what on Andorra's lips, but before she could get it out, Callum was turning towards the door in a distraction. "C'mon, Aihfie. She's right. We're probably better suited lounging in the background, since we'll be here for a while with nothing else to do."

As the two blended into the crowd, Andorra felt a sense of ease overtake her. There was little she could do when those two were breathing down her neck. Her own personal guards had no alliance to her or her safety.

She quieted her voice. "Just because they're with us, doesn't mean we trust them. We've established a plan to head into the Northern Mountains in eight weeks, and then they'll be gone. For now... well, for now we ignore their existence."

Hans still looked unhappy. "Hard to ignore them when they'll be glued to your side." Then, he looked back to Bort. "Want to go to the board game store? See what new dice they got in?"

Bort gave a happy nod. As the two boys went to pass her, he paused by Andorra's elbow. "If I could, I'd offer to be your guard. I wish I could be, just to make it a little easier on you."

Andorra didn't know what to say. She'd known Bort for a handful of days, and no way could she even dream of asking that of him. Instead, she offered a shaky smile, because that's all she could do. A smile in thanks for that small sacrifice, even if it was just words with no real action.

She watched as the two red headed boys barrelled out of the store, not a care in their world because unlike Andorra, they weren't in danger. They weren't royal fae.

Coralia turned to her, put both hands on her shoulders, and let out a sigh. "We're going to figure this out. For now, let's go look at dresses and ease up! Hans brought our mood down and we don't need that bullshit."

Andorra worked up a smile, but the day weighed on her. Noah weighed on her. The fact that she had two guards weighed on her. And, whether or not she liked it, she was tied back together with the Winter Court once again.

* * *

How do you feel about Aihfie and Callum? I think they're up to trouble

I hope you're enjoying the story so far! I know I love releasing new chapters for yall to read :)

Happy Wednesday!

love you all, xoxo