Chapter 1

My name is Kevin Dames. To be more precise though, my name is Sir Kevin Dames. I'm a Knight of the royal court here in Peach Creek. I am one of few who have been able to receive a Knighthood from the King of this land, King Magnus.

He is a magnificent King. He is strong and proud. He is never strict and is always quick to give pardon to those who deserve it. He is loved by all and has a love for all; his village is his family and he would do anything to ensure their safety.

Thankfully there hasn't been any feeling of war between the Kingdoms. Everyone seems to be on good terms with each other and trade has helped connect the neighboring Kingdoms with our own. Our village has fertile lands, best for growing big and healthy crops. A lot of the lands outside our kingdom are rocky and hard to grow crops. And with these fertile lands comes luscious grasslands that are perfect for raising cattle and sheep.

The main village is always peaceful. People are kind and generous with one another. There is selling of products produced within the village. And some are sellers from other lands, trying to sell their products to make a profit.

Everything would be perfect, if it wasn't for the court jester who is always doing something idiotic. I can't help but question why my Lord keeps him around. The jesters name is Eddy. Strange name if I do say so myself. He thinks practice jokes and playing scams on the village people is funny. To me, a knight, it isn't. He is just annoying and tricking the innocent people of Peach Creek. He should be put in the stockade for his crimes.

Oh, I always forget. There are actually two court jesters. One is just more interested in working in the kitchen than the other. Strangely enough, his name is also Ed. He is always talking about buttered toast and how he thinks it is good enough for our Lord to eat. Nonsense! The King needs hearty meals filled with meat. Ed doesn't believe chicken should be serve red to the King. The other day I remembered him asking the King if he would make a law against eating chickens. The King denied him his request.

I shook my head and stared out over the village. I needed to stop talking about those annoying scoundrels. I had to focus on keeping watch over the village. There were so many preparations going on for today's festivities that anything could go wrong and I would be of need.

I smiled as I looked at the sky for a moment. Today was a really special day. Today was the princess's birthday. She had finally turned eighteen and would soon be looking for a husband. It was rare for anyone to ever see her, inside or outside of the palace. She was a rare flower that only bloomed a few days out of the year to show her smile to the village and give them a wave.

The King always talked proudly of his daughter. Especially the day he gathered the Knights. He talked of how regal she was and how he never wanted anything bad to happen to her. He believed it was his job to find her a suitable husband.

He had looked around the room. "Maybe some of you would be interested in marrying my beautiful daughter?"

A rather quick 'yes' left the mouths of all those who were eligible to marry the princess. The King laughed and told us that maybe one of us would have the lucky chance. I shook my head as the horn that called for all Knights to meet went off on the tower of the palace. I tugged on the reigns in my hand and turned my house. We glided down the hill towards the cobblestone path; causing the women out an about to swoon as they watched me ride past. I couldn't help it. I was a lady's many after all.

The thought made me chuckle as I thought about how I could be the princess man. Ah that would be nice for sure. To be King of this beautiful village. I would do everything in my power to protect it. But I couldn't deny how I loved to have a sword at my side and a horse carry me through the trees and grass towards battle.

We galloped across the wooden door and into the courtyard of the palace. I was instantly greeted by the stable boy who halted my horse and helped me get down. All of this armor certainly was a pain at times. But I really did look good in it.

"Thy Lord wishes for you to meet him in the throne room," he said, taking the reins from me to lead my horse to the stables.

"Is something wrong," I quickly asked.

"Not at all. He just wishes to go over the plans for tonight on where Knights should stand to ensure the safety of the princess."

"The princess should be fine. I don't understand why the King is going so overboard with all of this."

"From what I have heard from some of the other servants," he looked around a bit and his voice got lower. "Sir Rolf intercepted word that some lowly bandits were thinking about storming the palace while everyone was gathered to steal any riches they can get their hand out, including the princess. Since everyone will be gathered in one room, my guess is they will try and steal from other areas of the palace."

"What," I gasped. "I have yet to hear word of this!"

He shrugged, "my guess is that they didn't want word getting out to everyone. And I'm certain they didn't want to frighten the princess with this information either."

I tugged my gloves from my hands as I made my way into the castle. Why hadn't I heard anything about this at all? Rolf and I had been very close. I was surprised he hadn't told me about this. Even better, I was surprised the King hadn't told any of the Knights.

In my haste and thoughts I wasn't paying much attention to where I was going. As I turned a corner to head to the throne room I was suddenly stopped with a thud and a soft 'oh dear'. I shook my head and looked at the person in front of me as they rubbed their face. Their hair was tucked away under a light blue vail that matched the beautiful gown they were wearing. Their face was pail and their eyes a beautiful blue that sent shivers down my spine.

It was the princess.

"My Lady," I was suddenly on my knee, my hand out stretched to help her to her feet. "I am truly sorry. Please forgive me. I was in my own thoughts and not paying much attention to my surroundings."

She giggled softly and placed her hand delicately in mine. "Tis all good, kind Knight. I, too, was lost in my own thoughts. So much to do on a day like today. Not to mention my father constantly reminding me that I have to talk to all the gentleman who come to the party tonight." She sighed, "so much to worry about."

I smiled at her, "you seem to have quite a full plate, my Lady."

"Oh," she pressed her free hand to her mouth. "Forgive me. It seems as though I have said too much."

I shook my head and helped pull her to my feet. "It is no trouble to listen to you, my princess. If ever you need someone to talk to, you can always count on a Knight to be there for you."

She smiled, "may I ask your name, Knight?"

I took a step back, "Kevin." I bowed, "Sir Kevin Dames, at your service."

She curtseyed, "it is an honor to have met such a respectable Knight, Sir Kevin."

I stood up straight. "It was an honor to run into you, my Lady. It is rare to see you out and about in the corridors."

She rubbed the back of her neck and looked away from me. "Father usually does not like for me to walk around unaccompanied. So I just stay in my room. I would rather be alone then be followed by people. But today I just needed to walk around to clear my head."

I nodded, "please stay safe, my Lady. If you'll excuse me, I must take my leave first. I must head to the throne room."

A smile crossed her face. "I am headed there are well. Would you accompany me?"

I smiled and held out my arm for her to hold onto. "I would love nothing more than to escort you."

She rested her hand on my arm and walked with me towards the throne room. The room was rather noisy with all the Knights gathered in one place. But the moment we walked into the room, everyone was silent. I couldn't help the smile on my face that said 'be jealous' as I walked the princess towards the thrones at the front of the room. She elegantly made her way up the couple of steps towards her seat before turning and curtseying.

"Thank you, Sir Kevin."

I nodded and took my place in line with the other Knights as she took her seat beside her mother. The King looked around the room for a moment. My guess was he was checking to see if all his Knights were there. Satisfied, he began to explain what would be happening for the night's activities. He explained where Knights would be posted and watching over the village people. He also explained that people who became too drunk or got too physical should be escorted out of the palace.

"And one other thing," he said sitting up straight, "all focus should be on the princess. Since there will be many people meeting with her to congratulate her on her birthday, there will be a Knight posted at her side for the entire evening."

You could hear the excitement in some of the sounds coming from the other Knights. They seemed all too thrilled with that. I couldn't help but roll my eyes. It's not like they would be able to try anything while at a huge party surrounded by people. And, just from our recent encounter, I could tell the princess wasn't the type of woman to excuse herself from a party with a man on her arm. She had much more grace than that.

"Sir Kevin Dames," the King said, his eyes focused on me. "You will be by the princess' side all night."

I nodded and bowed, "as you wish, my Lord."

As I stood up straight, my eyes met instantly with the princess' and a smile crossed her face.