Luca and Aston's house was relatively small compared to the other houses we've seen, but nice and homey.

When we walked in their mother, a sweet lady with an apron covered in flower, greeted us.

"Hello boys, and who might we have here?"

"Mummy, these are our new friends-Kat, Carter, Rosie, and Matthew. We met them in the courtyard." Aston replied

"Well hello dears, nice to meet you." She looked us all over but her gaze lingered on me. "I don't think I've seen you around before, where are you from, if you don't mind me asking?"

I froze, I forgot to think of a story to explain who we were. Luckily Carter saved the day. "We don't come into this town too often, more to the east."

"Ah I see, well it's lovely to have you all. I just made a fresh batch of bread if you want some." She turned to Luca, "Darling if you wouldn't mind fishing the jam out of the pantry, I'm going to go check on your father."

"Yes momma. This way guys." He led us into the kitchen where we ate our snack.

I had a feeling that Luca's mother knew who I was but it didn't bother me that much, they all seemed like a nice family.

After we had eaten we all went into the meadow by their house and just sat around talking. Peter and Marco came by, who I found out were also brothers and lived down the road from Luca and Aston, and we started up another round of soccer.

Soon it started to get dark so we had to say goodbye.

"It was lovely for you all to be so kind to us." Rosie said

"Oh yes, if we're ever in town again we'll be sure to stop by." I added

"Bye guys!" They all yelled as we set off down the path back to town.

"I like them." Carter said once we were awhile away.

"I liked them too, we'll have to visit more often." Matthew replied

"This was such a great day, we'll have to do all of this more often."

~°~°~°~°~°~

That night I had a horrible nightmare and woke up screaming and drenched in sweat. I slipped on my dress cover and slippers and went into the hallway. Everything was dark but the castle was my home so even without being able to see I made my way seamlessly to Carter's room.

I knocked on the door softly and the door opened with a light squeak.

"Kat? Kat what's wrong?" Carter's worried, sleepy voice was loud in the silent hallway and startled me.

"I had a horrible dream. I don't want to be alone." I know I sounded childish but with Carter things like that didn't matter. He pulled me into his arms and I melted into him, the horrible images dancing through my mind slowly fading.

"You'll never be alone with me." He looked back into his room and I saw that the door connecting his and his mother's was open. "Come on, I'll come to you." He slipped on a loose shirt and grabbed my hand gently, leading me down the hall back towards my room.

When we were back and the door was closed I climbed back into my bed and motioned for him to join me.

"Thank you for doing this."

"Anything for you." He wrapped his arms around me under the covers and pulled me close. "What was your nightmare about?" He asked softly. I ran through my brain but the memory was gone.

"I don't remember, I only know someone died and it felt so real." My body started shaking slightly and I felt his arms wrap around me tighter.

"Shhh it's okay. I'm here and I'm never letting go." With those words echoing in my mind I fell back into, luckily, a dreamless sleep.

When I woke up light was filtering through my room but Carter was gone, he had probably slipped away before morning so no one would know he was here.

I quickly got dressed in a light tan, half sleeved dress and brushed out my hair before running out the door towards Carter's room. I knocked gently and heard a "come in" so I went in and Carter was laying on his bed reading a book. His door to his mother's room was closed so she must be out somewhere so I laid down on top of him abruptly and he groaned.

"Well good morning." He rolled over so our chests were touching and kissed my nose lightly.

"I can't wait for the day when this doesn't have to be a secret." I whispered and saw his eyes light up.

"You want that to happen?"

"Of course I do Carter." He said no more, only kissed my lips lightly and then more passionately to where we ended in a tangled mess.

Once we had left his room we took a little basket of food and went into the garden where Rosie and Matthew were. All of us sat in a circle and ate danishes and crackers and messed around. It was nice.

Later on in the day I read in my room until I was called to a family dinner.

Now our family dinners also consisted of Carter's, Rosie's, and Matthew's so we filled a giant table set up in the ballroom and ate everything from potatoes to pie and roast beef and pasta. If you wanted it, we got it.

I loved family dinners because it was like our own little party. After the feast everyone just talked and danced, the little kids ran around playing games and the adults caught up.

It made me feel like we weren't the royal family, that we were just normal.

That night after everyone was asleep there was a knock on my door and Carter came in.

"Are we going to make a habit of this now?" I asked as he climbed into bed with me.

"If you want." He kissed my lips lightly and we snuggled together under the covers.

~°~°~°~°~°~

The next morning Carter was gone again and when I went to breakfast something seemed off.

"Good morning Uncle Perish." He was sitting farther away than usual from the head of the table. "Why so far away?"

"Oh I just wanted to sit next to my favorite niece." He smiled and put an arm over my shoulder, whispering in my ear. "That and your father asked for extra onions in his omelet." He waved a hand in front of his nose and made a face which in turn made me laugh.

Someone sat on the other side of me and I looked to see Carter reaching over for some toast. My uncle had gone back to eating so I turned to Carter and quietly said, "We need to figure out a better plan for all this sneaking around."

He only smiled at me. One of those smiles a boy gets where you know they're cooking up something mischievous but you don't care because it melts your heart. "Trust me, a new plan is in the works." Before I could ask what he meant Matthew came and sat down opposite us and Carter struck up a conversation with him.

Later on that day my mother and father called me and my younger siblings to a place on the castle grounds that's rather secluded but still nice. We would have privacy.

When I arrived there my mother, father, and younger siblings were all sitting down in a small circle.

"There she is." My mother exclaims calmly.

"Hello mother, father." I kiss them both and join the small circle. My brother Alexander the 4th was playing with blades of grass until I sat down and he looked up.

"What's all this for father?" His voice had not yet changed from the one of a child's to the one of a teenager so when he spoke it floated on the air in it's falsetto form.

"Yes, not to be blunt but we don't normally do this." Eliayana put in. She was younger than Alex and her light brown hair was in a braid that touched the grass she was sitting on.

"Well this is more for Katarina but your mother and I figured you would want to hear it. We would've invited Anna and Christy but they were out today so we'll tell them separately." My father said. It would've been odd for anyone else to hear him speaking so softly and without rigor but to my siblings and I it was what we have known all of our lives.

The twins, Augustine and Amerella were playing with each other by my mothers side when one fell on her rump and started to cry out. My mother picked her up and ran her fingers through her hair softly, calming her down.

"Well there's no sense in beating around the bush, Alex." My mother said to my father with a sigh while still smiling, she was always smiling.

"You're right Katherine." He took a deep breath, "Well here it goes. We haven't had to have this talk before because both Anna and Christy have married into different royal families but depending on what happens here-" At this he looked at me sadly, yet still with pride, "we might have to change some things.

"So, if Katarina marries someone from the kingdom and wishes to stay," my father takes another long pause and I was worried about what he would say next. "It is our will that she takes on the kingdom." No one spoke for a long time. My father's words were echoing in my mind over and over.

"So you're making Katarina your heir?" Alex looked dumbfounded. I figured he would've been upset considering he was the first born son but my parents knew that I've never felt that way about someone outside the kingdom so it made sense. There was no rule about who could become heir, it was who the predecessor chooses or was passed down through the family.

"I don't know what to say." I said quietly.

"It's what you can do." My father was grinning broadly and I couldn't help but grin along with him. "Someone is waiting for you at a certain balcony." He winked at me and I couldn't help but overthink what he meant. Balcony?

And then it hit me.

"You mean the one with Car-"

"I don't know, you'll have to go see." My mother said sweetly. I jumped up and kissed my mother and father then went to run out of the clearing when my father said,

"Whatever is happening though you should keep it to yourself." The possibilities were endless. I ran from the clearing and through the garden, getting a lot of nasty looks from some adults for running so fast, and into the castle.

On my way to the balcony where Carter and I had our first kiss I ran into Matthew. And when I say ran into I literally mean ran into. Both of us fell back on our rumps and started laughing.

"Where are you off to in such a rush?" He asked while helping me up.

"I have no idea." I said truthfully. He looked at me oddly so I elaborated. "I have to meet someone on this balcony, I think it might be Carter but I'm not for sure." He looked at me quizzically again but then the clouds parted from his eyes and he lit up with understanding.

"Ohhhh."

"Wait, do you know?"

"Know what?"

"What's happening?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." He then ran off and caught up in confusion I didn't run after him, instead I started off towards the balcony again thinking everyone knew what was happening but me.

I ran to a spare room and moved the couch to climb behind through a hole that Carter and I made. I then made my way carefully to the balcony where Carter and I had watched the meteor shower not 3 nights before.

"Carter?" I opened the window and climbed out onto the balcony but no one was there. I looked around but only saw a small envelope. I gingerly picked it up and opened it.

Dear Katarina, I hope no one has spoiled anything but I figured this would be a wonderful place to start our day. Next I ask of you to go to the ballroom where you danced with that handsome boy Carter, perhaps grab him a cookie?

This was all obviously Carter but I decided to play along and go to the ballroom.

Once I got there it was empty except for a plate with a sugar cookies on it and a note. All it said was your secret hiding place. So I wrapped the cookie in a napkin and set off for my room.

There I found another note on the outside of my sword that said to check the top vanity drawer. In the drawer I found yet another cookie and note that said this ones for you, now go to my room.

On my way to Carter's room I ate my cookie and then Rosie found me, looked me up and down and nodded to herself.

"You look good for the occasion."

"Wait what? What do you mean?" She only smiled at me and ran off. I looked down at my lavender and creme half sleeved dress. It was nice but not fancy and my hair was half up and wrapped in a white ribbon.

I shrugged to myself and went on to his room where I found a small box on his bed. In the box was a tiny charm of a flower. I looked down at my wrists and saw that I wasn't wearing the charm bracelet he had given me for my birthday so I went back to my room and in the box I kept it in I found another note.

After about seven or so more notes leading me all around the castle I found one that read, go to where the charm is found.

I looked down at the charm I found earlier and figured he meant the garden.

When I had reached the courtyard I realized that the sun was just now beginning to set but for some reason there was glowing lights up ahead.

In the garden there were fairy lights strung on trees and everything was made to look nice but I didn't see an envelope or person anywhere.

Just as I was about to look at the last note again Carter walked up through the trees. He was dressed nicer than I had ever seen him before. He wore a Prince's attire. A suit with adornments over his shoulder and small medallions on his chest. His cufflings were gold and he walked with such pride that I would've mistaken him not to be my best friend but a fairytale prince from another land.

"Carter?" He smiled broadly at me and gave me a hug, squeezing me slightly at the last second.

"Did you have a good day?" He asked oddly, like he was trying hard not to burst.

"Well I did get to run all over the castle." He laughed nervously.

"I'm sorry, I tried to make it fun, but I had to keep you away for awhile."

"Why?"

"So I could set up all of this." He motioned around to the now fully lit up garden. Above us, through the trees, I could see the stars.

"What is this for?" I made the same hand motion and Carter took a deep breath and shut his eyes, like he was preparing himself for something.

All of a sudden he backed up and took one knee before me and everything that has happened finally cleared in my head.

He took one of my hands in both of his and looked up at me, grinning. "Katarina Alicia Marie Delasrosse," he smiled to himself, "as you know I have loved you for a long time, I expressed this to you the night of your party. I've wanted to do this for so long." He let my hand go and reached into his pocket. My hands instinctively covered my mouth and tears brimmed my eyes. It all made sense now.

He pulled out a small light blue box and opened it, holding it up for me to see a beautiful ring with a small diamond on it.

"Katarina, would you please, make me the happiest man in the world and accept my offer of courtship." He looked down as if calming his nerves and then looked back up at me, smiling that goofy grin I fell in love with years ago.

"Yes." It took him a second to realize what I said before his eyes widened and he jumped up and wrapped his arms around me, lifting me into the air and spinning me around all over the garden. Our laughs and his shouts of joy filled the whole courtyard and in that moment I've never felt happier.

Finally he set me down and pressed his lips to mine, his hands cupping my face.

"Thank you." He breathed, our faces were inches apart.

"So this is official then?"

"It is."