𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 | 𝐝. 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐲

chapter one

I opened my eyes quickly.  Fear filled my veins as I tugged on the steel chains that forced me against the hard, cold, stone wall.  Tears rushed down my cheeks as I tried to call for help.  But no one came.  A man stepped out of a dark corner and came up to me.  He lifted my face upward before bringing the knife in his hand to my cheek.

"Don't you have the perfect little life, princess?"  He hissed, "Well, it all ends now."

Aurelia sat up straight in her bed, wide-eyed and scared to death.  She rubbed her puffy face and checked her phone for the time; 4:23 a.m.  Sighing, she got out of bed and went to her luxurious bathroom to check herself in the mirror.

"Just keep breathing,"  She told herself over and over again, trying to prevent the severe panic attack she felt was unavoidable. "Your new bodyguards are coming in the morning, they're probably already in the castle, okay?  You'll be fine."  She cooed to herself, running her hands through her long hair.

She was still scared, but she needed to sleep.  She was exhausted and the past couple weeks were traumatizing.  Aurelia slowly walked back to her bed and tried to fall asleep.  The silk sheets, giant mattress, and comfy pillows all aided her and she fell into a deep slumber.

***

"Princess Aurelia, wake up!"  Hannah called excitedly, throwing open the dark pink drapes.  Hannah was Aurelia's maid and helped her with anything, and everything, the princess needed.

"Are they here yet?"  The princess yawned. 

"Yes."  Hannah replied quickly, turning on the shower for Aurelia.  "Hurry, now, let's not keep them waiting."

Aurelia lightly jogged over to the bathroom, undressed, and hopped in the steaming water.  It took a minute to adjust to the heat, but she let out a happy sigh as the flow rushed through her hair and down her back.  She gently massaged the sweetly scented shampoo into her scalp and down her hair.  The princess then lathered a cream cleanser onto her face before completely immersing herself in the water.  Aurelia squirted a fair amount of conditioner onto her hands before rubbing it into her hair.

She finished up, exited the shower, then threw on her robe before calling Hannah over to do her hair and make up.  The woman put Aurelia's hair up in a towel before applying light makeup on her already beautiful face.  Hannah then dried and straightened the princess' hair before putting it up in her iconic ponytail.

Once that was finished, the middle-aged woman helped her into a beautiful dress.  The dress reached halfway down her thighs, clung to her body while flaring at the skirt, and was light peach in color; gems scattered on the top half to complete the look.

Hannah then clipped in some diamond earrings, placed a few rings on the girl's fingers, and wrapped a bracelet on her wrist.  She then took the princess by the hand and led her to a nearby stool before slipping Aurelia's feet into a pair of peach-colored platform heels. Hannah then led the princess to the tall mirror to admire her beauty.

"Wow, Hannah, you are amazing,"  Aurelia chuckled, "thank you!"  The princess reached into her dresser and pulled out a twenty, handing it to Hannah.

"Your majesty, please, I can't accept that,"  The woman smiled warmly, not willing to take the tip. 

"C'mon, please?  Just this once?"  Aurelia pouted but Hannah shook her head.  "I-"  The princess tried to continue to protest but one of the other maids came into the room;

"Hurry, they've been waiting for almost forty minutes!"

And with that, the princess was led down to the meeting room, to meet the five men that would change her life - for better or worse.

***

As the princess walked into the brightly lit room, all eyes were on her.  She cursited sweetly after the men bowed before going back to their firm standing positions.  They each wore black jeans, black dress shirts, paired with black ties.  Their belts were decorated with weapons, easy to grab if the situation called for it.

"Aurelia, these are your new bodyguards."  Her mother, Geneva, said after side hugging her.  The princess waved shyly, causing each boy to smile.  "I'll let you get acquainted."  With that she left.

"I'm Jonah Marais,"  One stepped forward and said sternly, "I'll be in charge of keeping you safe from the potential threats of the people you talk to."

"Okay, thank you,"  Aurelia smiled, nodding.

"My name's Jack Avery,"  Another said, "I'll be in charge of making sure your surroundings are safe."

"Thank you, Mr. Avery,"  Aurelia spoke softly.  Jack thought now wouldn't be the best time to say 'please, just call me Jack' so he kept it to himself and smiled back.

"Hey, I'm Zach Herron,"  A third said with a big smile, "I'll be in charge of your transportation - making sure your routes, drivers, and vehicles don't pose the slightest threat."

"I'm Corbyn Besson, this is Daniel Seavey."  Another said as the man beside him waved slightly.

"We'll be at your side at all times."  Daniel smiled.

"Thank you so much you guys,"  The princess looked down shyly, "I'm sure you heard what happened, am I right?"  The boys nodded simultaneously, causing the princess to let out an embarrassed laugh.

"Don't worry, nothing like that will happen again."  Corbyn ensured her, smiling and she nodded in thanks.

"Why don't we eat some breakfast?"  Aurelia suggested, opening the door and leaving with the five.  Daniel and Corbyn walked by her sides, Jonah walked in front of her, while Zach and Jack walked behind them.

Aurelia smiled.  She felt safe.  Even though she had just met these boys, and they seemed to be about her age, she knew they were gonna do their job and protect her - unlike the last bodyguards.