The princesses except for Shinja were enjoying the company of their princes. The princes, Brown, Diamond, Violet and Yellow had used the time of Shinja's picnic with Silver to propose to their beloveds. The king had given them his blessing and wedding preparations would soon be ongoing. Pink-White suspected that the same would apply to his youngest daughter. He trusted Silver would use that opportunity to propose. Five weddings. Wow!

Shimi and Brown were lovey-dovey in the rose garden. Prince Diamond and Shimki were in the courtyard in each other's arms by the communal fireplace. Yellow was playing the harmonica for Shimpi by the cascading green wall, whose leaves at night glowed a fluorescent green.

Violet and Shinka were messing around in the stables as they discussed what her father had told her. Violet had been understanding about the entire aspect. He thought it reasonable that an heir be left for the Green kingdom as all the sisters would be going away shortly with their husbands.

A whole kingdom, like the Green kingdom could not be left behind unattended. Especially, if that kingdom held the keys of immortality and the evil Gipus witches at bay. There had to be a ruler left in charge, one with a dose of immortal blood in their veins. And, if that be their child, then so be it. They still had time. They would watch the child grow and then guide it into being a good leader.

"I believe your father means it in the best possible way." Violet spoke after a moment of silence as he digested the information Shinka brought to him from her father, Pink-White.

"I know my love. But, I was worried that you would be scared stiff by the possibility of giving up our child. You now, having to deal a strange land's customs is no joke."

"No, my dear. I would not put you in such a place. I would not want to be a wedge between you and your family." He spoke adoringly.

"Thank you, Violet." She whispered to him.

"Pleasure's all mine, Shinka, my Amazon."

"I know this may sound wrong, but, having our first child rule over the Green kingdom sounds pretty awesome."

Violet laughed. "Of course, if he is taken..."

"He?" Shinka interrupted. "How sure are you that our first child will be a boy?"

"I jus—call it a gut feeling." He spoke thoughtfully while playing with her hair then added. "If our first child becomes king of this kingdom, we shall have many other children."

"I am not a breeding mare Violet." Shinka said matter-of-factly.

"Don't I know that." They both laughed at his utterance.

"But I understand what you mean. A house full of little yous and mes does not sound so bad."

"Ye..." Gong! Violet's response was cut off. Gong! "What's that for?" He twisted his head to gaze into his fiancée's amber eyes. Her expression mirrored his. Blank. Confusion.

"I don't know. Do you think they could be summoning us?"

"What for?" Violet queried.

"How would I know?" She shrugged.

"I am sorry. It's quite sudden. Don't you think?"

"I concur. It's night time already. Regardless, let's go check it out. Never know, it could be my father. He always has something to say. Trust."

Violet laughed. A ghost smile formed on Shinja's lips as they got up from where they had been laying across the hay bunch. Violet came in right after and both of them scampered to the castle.

The gong disrupted their chat but thank all the birds in the sky it had not been before the most important details were laid out. Shinka was glad to have an understanding fiancé. Violet made her so happy. She was elated that soon, she would be his queen, ruling by his side.

Word went out that they were to converge in Evalene's room (the girl's late mother). This announcement was made by a footman whom they meant at the entrance of the castle hall. Each couple, hand in hand, proceeded to the said meeting place.

Finding the door ajar, they stepped in.

~*~

In there, displayed were colorful exquisite gowns. Later on, they would discover that Evalene had made them for her daughters in advance and thought of their weddings. The meager thought boggled the girls, all of them, but mostly Shinja. How had she known?

Evalene was a meticulous woman. She loved things done earlier. She paid attention to detail in anything she did, be it the castle errands, servants' uniforms, the entire kingdom missed her. Her daughters' gowns had been her last project before she breathed her last. She had poured her soul into each weave, thread, gemstone and cut. Elegant. Beautiful. Fancy.

This room was where all memorabilia about her was kept. One could feel her touch in there, like she never left. The room fell silent. The marvelous sight before them had managed to make them as mum as an oyster.

Pink-White did not notice they were inside despite the fact that he was the one who had called for them. This was his place like the Secret Garden was to Shinja. Evalene's room was his place. She was his person. Had been his, forever would be his. He missed her. He came here every time he missed her more than he could bear. He would sit on the seat next to the fireplace adjacent to the red seat she used to love and have conversations with her as though she never left.

Finally, someone broke the silence, shutting down his reminiscing.

"Your Majesty, you called for us!" Brown said once they were done gaping at the heart-thump-worthy beauty in the room. Sure, to congregate side by side; the princes and the princesses waited for Pink-White to say something.

The call drew him out of his reverie where he was talking with Evalene about their grown girls. He faced them quickly and spoke with gusto that they had not expected from a man who had been so faraway only a while ago.

"Welcome, welcome!" He spoke quite deafeningly for an indoor gathering. However, his audience dared not to interrupt. "My daughters and your fiancés! Welcome! I shall now ask the princes to excuse us for a while."

"What?" The princes muttered at once.

Seeing the confusion on their countenance, he added to clarify why they had to leave. "It may not be the case for you in your kingdoms but here in the Green kingdom..." he gestured in a dramatic hand wave which Shimki thought was ridiculously funny. She laughed.

"Sorry papa, please go on." She apologized after all eyes in the room had zeroed on her bursting with mirth.

"Eyes here everyone." The king instructed drawing the attention to himself. "To you the princes, like I was saying. Here at the kingdom of Green, we believe in the myth, where the groom must not see the bride in her gown before the wedding day. That said, excuse us."

On understanding the purpose for the dismissal of the princes, the girls eagerly assisted their father in making sure their fiancés left. They pushed the princes out of the door and shut it in their faces.

"There! All gone!" Shinka dusted her fingers as though she had completed a humongous load of house chores. The other sisters laughed. That did not stop the princes from eavesdropping at the door.

By some way, the princesses knew that the princes had not gone far. There was no way they would have. Too stubborn for their own good. Thus, the princesses chose to speak in hushed tones so that the princes could not pick most of what they were saying. The gowns were gorgeous, matching each of their tastes perfectly. The coincidence that each dress matched the name of their fiancés boggled their minds so they asked their father.

"Father, how did mother know about our fiancés?" asked Shimpi.

"Yes, dad these dresses match the names of our fiancés." Shimki chipped in.

"Exactly! There's diamonds, yellow, violet, brown or is that caramel?" Shinka asked. Everyone burst in laughter. "Anyways, you get my point. How daddy?"

"Yes, tell us papa. How did mama know?" Shimi chipped in. Not a word was heard from Shinja.

"You are wise and curious just like your mother. I knew this would not skip your notice." He spoke in wonder.

"Well, are you going to feed our curiosity? Or what?!" Shimpi asked, earning a giggle from each of the other girls. She always knew how to get what she wanted once her mind was set on it.

"You see, you are not the only one that knows how to use the charm book, Shinja." He spoke calmly unfazed by his Shimpi's urgency. That was when Shinja looked up and he saw that she too though silent, was as eager as her sisters to know how it had come about. He smiled and looked away from her.

"What does that book have to do with this?" asked Shimi low on a whisper, now more curious than the rest.

"Nothing serious but there are a few tricks that your mother was able to pull off with that book better than anyone I know. You can tell that with your grandmother's assistance she flourished." His Head turned to face his youngest daughter, Shinja.

"Dad, come on get on with it already. Please..." Shimki was getting impatient. Pink-White was still enjoying the fact that they were burning with curiosity—a family trait they each shared—but he decided against drawing it out any longer. He told them.

"Okay, okay..." he gestured with his hands to have them cool down. "So..."

"Unha!" The girls uttered in tandem.

"So, your mother, God rest her beautiful brilliant soul, used the charm book to peep into the future. That is how she got to learn the names of your fiancés. She used it to her advantage and got those beautiful gowns made for you."

"Wow!!!" The girls muttered in awe. The next moments could have gone by in a blur if Pink-White was not focused on memorizing each of the girl's reaction. He would tell Evalene all about it later during their time, that is if she was not watching already. He gazed out at the spotted sky through the far window and smiled.

The girls chatted away lost in the beauty before their eyes. Trying on their gowns, their father forgotten. Choosing a gown was easy for each was custom made. When they were done, they rushed out of the room giving hasty pecks to their father. On their way out, they almost bumped into their fiancés. It was not a surprise but for a minute they had forgotten that the princes were still by the door.

"Oh!" Shimi spoke. They looped their hands into each other and skipped away to wherever they wished.

All of them except for Shinja.

She tapped her father's shoulder who turned his face to the wall staring at a portrait of Evalene, his late wife.

"I knew you were going to stay behind, Shinja," he smirked before turning. He did not need to look at her to know that it was his youngest daughter who remained behind. "What do you want to know? Ask my dear, I will tell you."

"Did she know?" She asked quite timidly.

"Did she know what my dear?" He had a clue as to what she was asking but he needed her clarity on whether she wanted to hear it.

"Did she know that she was going to die? Can the charm book show you that?"

"The book can do many things my dear." He walked away from where he was standing and went on ahead to stare at the portrait of his lovely late wife.

Evalene, if only you were here with me. He recalled that Shinja was still there with him so he added. "It cannot predict when you are going to die but it can give you clues. Your mother was a brilliant woman. She used the clues to figure it all out. She did not want you to feel like she was not present on your wedding day, that is why she made those dresses. She is with you. She never left."

"I understand father." Broken, but hopeful that was how she sounded. Her father turned to console her. He hugged her and kissed her forehead. They allowed the silence to consume them in respect of her memory till Shinja decided that it was time she left.

Finding Silver on the other side of the door startled her. He had waited for her. The other princes had already left with their fiancées and he had waited? How sweet!

"What is it my love? Is everything alright?" He asked when he saw the troubled look in her eyes. She blinked away the tears that were sneaking up on her and tried looking chirpier.

"Yes, Silver all is well. The gowns were beautiful. They fit so well." He wanted to push further so he could find out what had drawn the curtains of sadness over her joy but he sensed that the time was not right. So, he focused on the good and positive at hand.

"You are going to be the most beautiful bride my eyes have ever seen."

He held her hand and brought it to his lips. Kissing it, he walked her to her chambers. After he was sure that she was safe, he went to his room satisfied.

She sighed.

~*~

Later in the night when you could hear a pin drop, five masked knights walked into the palace. They managed to stealthily trot to the chambers of the princesses. The princesses were sound asleep and did not hear the fidgeting that was happening at their doors.

Once inside, the unfamiliar men did not give the princesses time to fully understand what was happening. While they struggled to shake sleep off their eyes, their captors gagged and threw them over their shoulders and ran as fast as lightning bolts. The girls struggled in vain.

Their muffled screams got no further than their captors. Shimi struggled enough to hit the man—who had her on his shoulder—in the groin with bare feet; there had been no time for decency and sandals. They were in their night gowns, hair askew, feet bare and a few uncalled-for streaks of drool marked some of their faces.

Fantastic! Please future husbands don't cross our paths right now. Thank you, sweethearts. Shimi internally begged. She was sure the same thought was going on in the minds of some of her sisters' minds.

Her captor was grimacing as pain shot through his entire body, he dropped her on the ground and scrunched up on the floor groaning. It was a perfect opportunity to scatter for dear life. She started running but was stopped midway. A strong hand caught her foot and she hit the floor, her hands flailing helplessly in the air looking for what to hold onto.

That was fast you sick meanie! How did you recover that quickly?! Dearie me! There goes my only chance at escaping. Sorry sisters, I tried. She thought hard, afraid that her thoughts were being hard. She very much wanted to say them out loud.

He had regained composure faster than she had presumed. It was dark. She could not see anything with the dimly lit moon rays that were sipping through the palace ventilations. What was she going to do? And why was the world spinning?

If only she could see her sisters, she was sure there would be tears in their eyes. All of them except Shinja. That little bird had a way of being brave at times they all did not expect. She must be thinking of something. Ouch!

She remembered that her foot was clutched in the ever-not-so-loving hands of her so-called kidnapper.

Damn him and his quick recovering round spheres! His grip on her heel became tighter and rougher to halt her struggling attempts to escape bruising her tender skin.

Now what?

~*~


A/N: Are you still there?😅😈 

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