Why did her mother choose these seven guards?

Sure they were popular amongst the court and the staff which is probably why her mother assigned them to her. Why her though? Her younger sister could have them. There was also the possibility that Suki won't mind if the guards mix with each other.  But that wouldn't be fair to her. Or would it?

"Not going to happen, [Y/N] unnie." The princess's brown-haired sister shook her head.

[Y/N] frowned at her sister. Normally Suki would be jumping to spend extra time with cute boys. The older princess thought she would agree if she got to pick, but nope. She had to deal with seven guards she didn't want. What was the issue with the previous guards? They were just fine. And she didn't need protection. She had magic after all.

"Couldn't you just think about it?" [Y/N] pleaded.

Suki looked at her older sister. "You get to be with seven hot guys who are at your beck-and-call essentially for the next nine months. Or are you worried you'll get too attached to one of them, fall in love with one to the disgrace of the [L/N] name, and destroy generations of magic and respect to the order of the world and the Academy of the Seven Royal Magics?"

"Noooooo. But these guards are the performing guards. They do that thing for the staff on Fridays when the majority is off duty. They'll distract me." said [Y/N].

"Go pack." Suki pointed to where to put her things for the trip tomorrow to the academy.

[Y/N] humphed and left the room. She did go to pack her bags for the trip tomorrow. At least, she'll have her ladies and her maids. But she wasn't looking forward to it. When the princess arrived in her room, her three maids (Anne, Mary, and Lucy) were at busy work packing her trunks while cleaning up after themselves. They bowed when they saw her come into the room.

The rest of the day went by in a blur. From supper to winding down for the day to finally going to sleep when the family cat crawled into her bed and she dismissed her maids. The morning after wasn't much different. And then the moment she was most dreading happened.

She met her seven guards. She was none too pleased with one of them.

The only squad of seven guards were in a frenzy the following morning as the seven guards rushed to get their things ready for the meeting with the heir to the Ishgaran throne. And the youngest guard of eighteen, Jeon Jungkook, wasn't too thrilled with it. The other boys, Kim Taehyung, Park Jimin, Min Yoongi, Kim Seokjin, Jung Hoseok, and Kim Namjoon, didn't seem to mind it. They were, however, shocked that the queen requested them by name. Their real names. Not what the staff called them.

"Why do we even have to watch after the princess? Can't her normal guards do it?" questioned Jungkook.

"Just be glad we are no longer on night duty." Jimin reminded him as the boys shuddered at the thought.

The worst duty a guard can do is sit out and wait for the supply carts to come up, inspect them when they do, and give the all clear. Yeah it's an important job, but the guards hate it through the winter months. And winter lasts half a year in Ishgara ever since the current queen and king got married almost twenty one years ago.

"This is a new assignment for us. Sangchul wouldn't have agreed if he didn't think we were capable of this." Namjoon told the rest of his comrades.

"He's probably thrilled to get Seokjin away to make a move on Kiyomi." Taehyung said as his eyes darted to the said boy.

"Sorry my face is so pretty." The comment made the others roll their eyes.

"Anyway, are you all ready to go with your stuff? ("It's not like we have much stuff.") We're supposed to be at the meeting place in fifteen minutes." Namjoon looked at Jimin. "And I would rather not be Jimin late today."

The guard known as Park Jimin mumbled about it being only one time.  His two best friends, Kim Taehyung and Jeon Jungkook, began listing times where he was late or they were late because of him. And it was a long list. Namjoon mumbled something about not being paid enough for this shit. After a few minutes, the boys were ready to go. 

However, Jungkook was still complaining. No one stopped him. They had all learned that when he started ranting to let him finish. Namjoon only tried to shut him up when they were at the meeting place. There was no way that he was going to let the golden youngest badmouth the princess in front of her or the rest of the royal family.

"Look, I don't want to work for the prissy pink princess who's going to call for our help because she broke a nail. At least before we were never seen." Jungkook ranted.

Jimin snorted. "Yeah, but everyone knew us. In more ways than one for some of us."

Jungkook pushed his long black hair out of his eyes. "I get that a normal princess needs protection, but she's a princess with magic. She can protect herself easily."

"You just want to stay here because you know all of the secret spots for make outs." Taehyung said as he held his small furry partner in his arms. "We all know about the cellar, Kookie."

Jungkook grumbled at that and the others groaned at what Seokjin said next. "My face will still be worldwide handsome. Maybe the princess will like it."

"All princesses are the same." Namjoon's eyes were the first ones to widen when the female in question walked in with her three ladies maids by her side. The boys seemed to catch on when Namjoon tried to get Jungkook to shut up. "They're snooty, arrogant, prissy, cynical, superficial, selfish, manipulative, bitchy, shallow, rude, judgemental, overdramatic damsels-."

"I'm sorry my presence offends you. I'll have half a mind to send you back where you came from. Unfortunately, we will be late if I have to go fetch someone to take charge of your post at the last minute. What would Captain Rouselette think? Pretty low and pitiful of one of his guards that he picked out for this position." [Y/N] snapped at the guard with the black hair, piercings on his ear and lip, brown eyes, and tattoos on his arm and fingers.my sister was right. He is cute. The rest of them are too.

Jungkook jumped his attention to Taehyung and Jimin. "Why didn't you stop me?"

"We tried. You just didn't want to stop." Jimin told him to which the youngest growled.

"You didn't understand what this meant." Taehyung did the cut it out motion. Jungkook tilted his head to the side. Yeah, he was never going to get it, anyway. 

“My lady, I am sorry for my subordinate’s mouth.” Namjoon bowed before the princess. 

“You’re the leader of this squad correct?” Namjoon nodded. “Then, it’s your job to keep his tongue in check.” she told him to which he agreed that he would. 

Jimin smacked the back of Jungkook’s head, mumbling an idiot. Yoongi glared at him. Him and Namjoon could discipline him on their own. They don’t need help from one of the youngest ones. 

“We are just waiting on Princess Suki and her maids. They should be here any moment.” the mahogany haired maid known as Anne told the guards. 

Anne was the oldest of the heir’s maids. She was also one of the palace’s staff that had been working within the walls for the longest times. The only people that had been working in the palace longer than her was the head of the palace staff who gave all the maids, butlers, and other servants their duties, the tutors for the princesses that had been here since their parents were studying, the court physician who was caring for the third generation of royalty, and the royal chef. 

Anne had been at the palace since she was a little girl, and that was during the time when the current king’s older brother was a young boy. Before the war that transpired between the Kingdom of Ishgara and the Kingdom of Chrysalis that ended in tragedy and an arranged marriage.  

“And what about her guards? Are they on their way?” asked Hoseok. 

“Captain Rouselette gave them the job of packing the carriages of the princesses' belongings.” Anne replied. The other two, Mary and Lucy, would have replied, but they were too busy giggling and checking out the boys (namely Taehyung, Seokjin, Jungkook, and Yoongi). 

Princess Suki arrived with her own maids, Hana, Tora, and Asami, a few moments afterwards. By that time, the carriage had already arrived with Princess Suki’s guards along with the horses for the guards that couldn’t fit on the carriage as a footman or a rider. [Y/N] and Suki climbed into the carriage followed by their maids. 

[Y/N] was not looking forward to the journey ahead nor her nine months with these guards. For the most part, she did not mind six of them. The other one, the youngest, was a different story. If only someone would tell her what would become of them, then it would be a different story and a different outcome.