"Sofia can you please come to my room and help me put on my royal metals for the ceremony ball?" James said struggling to pin the medals on his classic green tuxedo he choose for this occasion. James now being twenty has grown into quite the gentleman, he has grown very tall, with big broad shoulders, slick dirty blond hair, and a very fine muscular build, and his kind brown eyes that have every girl at Royal Prep wishing to be his.
"Sure James just give me a second" said Sofia heading into James' room wearing a dress with a perfect mix of pink and purple. Sofia has also grown into quite the woman herself, now being eighteen she's only a few inches shorter than James, she has a beautiful hourglass figure, with her brown hair down to her waist, and her big innocent light blue eyes that guys think can break any spell no matter how strong. "Why do you always struggle putting on your royal metals, Amber and I always put on our medals in record time." Said Sofia Laughing at James
"Well maybe it would be easier if I wasn't poking myself every two fucking second, how do you manage to put these goddamn things on without poking yourself every two seconds?" James said now getting frustrated.
"Well maybe if you take your time and maybe actually listen when I try to teach you, you could even do it with your eyes closed, and I told you I don't like it when you start cursing every five seconds, it's unprince like." Said Sofia
"I do listen, it's just that my hand are to big to do this" James said looking at his big callused hands "Plus you try doing something this difficult without saying fuck every two seconds, 'cause I know you can't, you have as much of a dirty vocabulary as me." said James looking down at Sofia with a big grin on his face. James always liked spending time with Sofia, no matter where they are or how long they'd be in each other's company, He would enjoy every second.
"James, are you alright? You zoned out." Said Sofia snapping James out of his thoughts.
"Uh? Oh y-yes I'm fine I was just thinking of something." said James putting his focus back on Sofia.
"What were you thinking about?" Sofia said Looking up at James, with her crystal blue eyes shining in the room light.
"Oh um it isn't that important just worried for everything to go smoothly, 'cause you know this is a big deal for everyone we know." James said hoping that Sofia bought that lie.
"Oh don't worry about that James, if you want I'll be with you the whole night to make sure nothing happens to you." Said Sofia with a reassuring look.
"That sounds great!" James said with a big smile on his face "Wow Sofia is going to be with me the whole night, this ball might not be a total bore after all!" James thought and pulled Sofia for a big bear hug that they both always seem to enjoy.
"James, Sofia what are you two doing it's almost time to get the rest of the decorations re-" King Roland was shocked to see his son and step daughter standing very close to each other,
"Oh ha! Hey dad we were just about to head down to the ballroom." James said looking at Sofia, they both laughed at their father.
"Yeah I was just fixing his medal for him, we'll be right down."Sofia said still laughing.
"Oh yeah I guess I'm just nervous for the ball, you two hurry we don't have much time." King Roland said while walking out of James' room into his own.
"Miranda I swear I heard something strange in his room" King Roland said while fixing his tie.
"I'm sure it's nothing Roland you can trust them, they're our children, and we have to trust what they told us and we can soon be able to pass on our crowns." Miranda said walking up to Roland.
"Yeah I guess you're right it isn't that bad they seem happy no matter what, anyways let's get going the kids are waiting." King Roland said taking Queen Miranda by the hand and leading her to the ballroom. The King and Queen now being a lot older than before have grown more and more tired of ruling and less capable to do so, and are now waiting for one of their kids to rule the kingdom.
When they got to the closed ballroom doors they heard whispering of three familiar voices. "This is crazy why didn't you two tell me sooner, I would get why you would want to hide this from mom and dad, but from me why? This is the greatest thing ever!" said Princess Amber. Amber much like Sofia has also grown into quite the woman herself, being just half an inch taller than Sofia but no where near close to James' height, and having her blond hair a little over her waist, and a similar hourglass shape as Sofia, with light brown eyes that has anyone at her beck and call. Amber for this occasion was wearing a dress with her classic green and yellow but a big bow on the back.
"Because Amber you're not that great at keeping secrets and you know that, plus we wanted to save this for a special occasion." Said Prince James.
"Yeah Amber don't think too much about it, we wanted this to be a surprise to you too, but I guess not." said Princess Sofia. And with that King Roland and Queen Miranda walked in the ballroom not noticing what they were really talking about.
"What is this surprise we keep hearing about?" Asked King Roland not taking his eyes off of Sofia and James who were hand in hand.
"Well dad if you look behind you all your questions will be answered." James said with a big smile on his face and with his free hand pointing up to reveal a big glass stained portrait of their family, now older than what they once were.
"Wow kids this is amazing, how did you pull this out without Roland or I finding out... The staff didn't tell us anything, you did this so fast, how is this even-" Sofia cut her mother off and walked towards her mother pulling James with her,
"We told the staff to keep it a secret and planned this to be all set up when you three were gone-" James cut her off to finish her sentence,
"Yeah, it was all Sofia's idea so I just went along with it, she always wanted to update the one from when we were little so she thought now would be the perfect night, she told me to make sure you guys didn't come in the ballroom to find out anytime sooner than what we wanted, so Sof and I decided right now would be a better time, before any guest show up to see it first." James said adding to Sofia's last statement.
"And I didn't want to tell Amber till it was too late to change anything so she wouldn't complain, because knowing Amber she would have wanted it bigger or something, because you know her 'bigger is better' last time I remember her stating." Sofia said motioning towards Amber and laughing.
"Well, you're not wrong there I've always loved big things and shiny things, and I admire you two keeping this from me for as long as you did." Amber said looking at the royal sorcerer Cedric installing the new stained glass portrait and walking away. Cedric has grown older and also less capable to be at the King and Queens beck and call.
"Yeah I'm surprised that Amber didn't try to sneak in here earlier to make sure thing were 'big enough' for her taste" James said trying not to laugh.
"Be nice James, even though we both know that's true that's still mean to say." Sofia said while hitting James' arm, then the four stared at each for a moment and laughed all in unison.
"Alright enough fooling around there's still a few things that we need to check off the list, did you two invite all of your friends?" Said Miranda cutting off the the laughter.
"Of course we did mom, everyone from Royal Prep and our closest friends from our neighboring kingdoms, I also made sure to invite some of our commoner friends. I basically was put in charge of the whole guest list." Sofia said as if she was stating the obvious in the kindest way possible.
"Yeah Sof and I have everything under control." Stated James while looking down at his and Sofia's hands. "Her hands are so soft how can they possibility be so gentle, wait why am I thinking about that?" James thought. "Yes, and I also have one more surprise for you Sof... Since some of the most important workers here in the castle are on their way to retiring, I asked your three closest friends from the village if they wanted to work here to be closer to you, and they all agreed!" James said with a big smile on his face hoping Sofia would be happy with this surprise.
"J-James this is great... But we-" James cut Sofia off from finishing her last question.
"Don't worry Sof... All the paperwork is done all your friends have chosen their jobs and are working with who they're going to replace tonight. Your friend Jade is working with Gwen, and your friend Ruby said she wanted to work with Baileywick to take his place when he retires..." James said. Baileywick has also grown weak and old from taking care of everything in the castle and agreed that this ball would be his last job in the kingdom. "And your witch friend Lucinda is going to work with Cedric." James said continuing his last statement with a reassuring smile which made Sofia let all her worries melt away.
"Wow my friends are going to work in the castle, this is great!" Sofia thought. Her friends have not changed as much from the time that they were kids, only now they have fully grown into their own mature bodies showing they're now fully grown women. "James you always know how to make my day better, and you know I can't say no when you smile like that." Sofia said looking at James' bright smile.
"Yeah I know, heh, that's why I do it." James said with a teasing smile turning his attention to his parents.
"So since everything is almost set and the ball doesn't start for one more hour, you two can go and do whatever you want until then." Said Miranda motioning to the door to dismiss the two.
"Okay mom see you later at the ball, come on James we still need to find you a proper tie that one looks funny on you." Said Sofia pulling James out of the ballroom.
"Alright Sof slow down, see you guys later." James said trying to keep up with Sofia.
"Did you see that Miranda they're really close aren't they?" Roland said with a light smile.
"Yes they are Roland, I can't wait until they take our places, they're going to be great rulers just like your past ancestors before you, just trust them and everything will be fine." Said Miranda with a reassuring grin.
"I guess you're right I don't know what's gotten over me, if they say it's going to happen then I'll let it happen." Said Roland.
"Alright then let's go open the gates for any early arrivals." Said Miranda pulling Roland through the grand hall.
"Hello welcome Princess Vivian how was your trip?" Said Queen Miranda motioning for the princess and her parents to come inside. Princess Vivian didn't change as much as the Sofia and Amber, being nineteen and being five feet and six inches naming her one of the tallest princess, and pretty much keeping her same hairstyle as when she was a kid.
"It was good thank you for asking your majesty." Said Vivian's mother walking in behind her.
"I know we're a bit early so can you please tell me where I can find Sofia?" Vivian said walking in the castle in front of her parents.
"Oh yes she's up with Amber and James, you can go up and join them if you want while I show your parents around." Said Miranda pointing Vivian to the stairs.
"Okay thank you" Vivian said heading up the stairs into Sofia's room.
"Hello Sofia, Amber, James, my parents and I came a bit early so I decided to see you guys before the party." Said Vivian with a shy smile on her face, even though a few years back Sofia helped her get rid of her shyness she still had a lot of anxiety when it came to people she didn't hang around as much as she does with Sofia.
"Oh hello Vivian you can come sit down I'm just fixing James' tie." Sofia said while motioning to a free spot on her bay window.
"Wow Princess Vivian I haven't seen you in a while, tell me how's it been?" Said Amber sitting in the free spot of the bay window next to Vivian.
"I-It's been going great, Desmond and I have gotten a lot closer over the years we're really hitting it off!" Vivian said with a big smile on her face and her eyes becoming brighter at the sound of her saying Desmond's name. Desmond also nineteen and much like Vivian is a shy person and doesn't like showing off as much as the other princes, he is more of a book worm so he doesn't have that much of a muscular build like the other princes, he has his dirty blond hair cut the same length as when he was a kid, and solid brown eyes that always reminds Vivian of chocolate and she loved that about him.
"Oh I see so you really do like him, I knew that you two liked each other, you're letting me plan your wedd-" Vivian cut Amber off from her rambling.
"W-Woah Amber don't you think you're thinking too far ahead?" Vivian said, her stuttering getting the best of her.
"Calm down Amber, Vivian don't worry she's just getting ahead of herself, you and Desmond can move at your own pace." Said Sofia putting a hand on Vivian's shoulder and giving her a kind smile.
"Sofia ruining all the fun." Said Amber crossing her arms over her chest.
"Well not everyone thinks 'bigger is better' Amber, some people like taking their time when it comes to things like this..." Said sofia now turning her attention back to James. "Alright James this tie looks perfect, we're ready for the ball." Said Sofia smiling down at James who was sitting on Sofia's bed.
"Okay brilliant how about we all head down to the ballroom." James said opening the door for the three ladies and walking behind them down to the grand hall into the ballroom.
"This ball is wonderful Amber, this may top the one I had last week." Said Princess Hildegard taking a sip from her wine glass. Hildegard and Clio pretty much took after Amber when it came to looks, these three girls are inseparable even after all these years they still are a strong trio.
"Well I can't take all the credit, if it wasn't for Sofia and James this wouldn't be possible." Said Amber while looking over at Sofia and James who were talking to other guest.
"They do make a good team, even back when we were kids at Royal Prep and they were in the Flying Derby team." Said Clio matching Amber's gaze towards the two.
"Yeah, Can you believe it! We finally graduated from Royal Prep." Said Amber with a growing smile on her face.
"Yes and it was nice for both your brother and step-sister to throw this after graduation ball for the whole school." Said Hildegard still not accepting the fact that Amber, James, and their father think of Sofia as a real sister/daughter.
"Yeah you know Sofia, always doing kind acts no matter how big... And I think James also agreed to do it so Sofia wouldn't be stuck doing the hard work by herself, he's always helped her, even back when she first arrived at the caste all those many years ago." Said Amber while the other two princesses shook their heads in agreement.
"Yeah he's also been super protective of her too, especially when they started teasing her when she first started going to Royal Prep, and when she was starting off in the Flying Derby team because she was the only girl there." Said Clio adding on to Amber's previous statement.
"Yeah I still call James Sofia's little guard dog, he's still around Sofia like that to this very day and not even him himself seems to notice." Said Amber now paying attention to the prince walking up to her.
"Hello Princess Amber, I haven't seen any other prince ask you for a dance, so it would be my pleasure to be the first one to ask... That is if you allow me?" Asked Prince Hugo bowing to respectfully greet the princess. Prince Hugo has grown in a new respectable manner, with his slick dark brown hair that was perfectly cut to match his taste, the same height as Amber, and a fine muscular build right for his taste.
"Seeing how that it true and with what a nice gentleman you've become, I will have this dance with you Hugo." Said Amber with a kind grin on her face but still looking like the classic Amber everyone has come know.
"Wait, really!? You're actually giving me a chance?" Said Hugo with a shocked but happy look on his face.
"Yes, I mean why not, if Sofia is kind enough to give you another chance to see the good within you then I will too, and it's not like I'm doing anything right now anyways." Said Amber with an understanding look on her face.
"Okay you two have fun, we'll be right here if you need anything Amber." Said Clio waving them off.
"Okay don't drink too much without me." Amber said jokingly.
"Oh trust me we will." Said Hildegard before Hugo pulled Amber away.
"See James I told you everything would run smoothly, I had no doubt in my mind." Said Sofia looking up at James.
"Yeah Sof I guess you're right, but I wouldn't say anything too soon or you might jinx it." Said James with a joking tone in his voice.
"Oh stop it I'm not jinxing anything." Said Sofia playfully smacking James' arm. "And thank you for helping me plan this ball, most of this couldn't be done without you." Said Sofia with serious tone in her voice.
"Sure Sof it was no problem, anyways you know I wouldn't let you plan something this big by yourself, and you also know I would do anything for you like I always have." Said James with an understanding look on his face. Sofia smiled and pulled James in for a hug, with James returning the gesture.
"And that's why you're the best brother I could ever ask for." Said Sofia smiling in James' chest, and James laying his chin lightly on her head making sure he doesn't poke himself with Sofia's crown.
"Okay how about we bring in our last surprise before the party is over?" Asked James now making eye contact with Sofia.
"Sure let's go get it and announce it so everyone can see it." Said Sofia dragging James alone the big crowd of royal visitors and some commoners.
"That was great Hugo I had fun, I guess I was right to give you another chance." Said Amber with a genuine smile on her face.
"Oh thank you Amber, you don't know how much this means to me, I've wanted to apologize for the way I acted before." Said Hugo walking Amber back to her friend before she stopped him and looked over his shoulder.
"I wonder where Sofia and James are going, the ball isn't over yet." Said Amber while turning Hugo around so he can see.
"How about we go find out, let's go follow them." Said Hugo pulling Amber towards the exit.
"Oh Sof I can't wait to announce this to everyone, I'm so excited!" James said looking like a little puppy who's happy to play.
"I can't wait either James, but can you please calm down before any of the guest see us with this beforehand?" Sofia stopped for a second to see if anyone was around and then turning back to James. "Wow Amber was right, he is like a puppy, how cute." Thought Sofia not putting much more attention on that matter. "Okay let's put a sheet over this and bring it to the ball-" said Sofia before getting cut off by Amber a Hugo 'accidentally' bumping into them.
"Oh! Sofia, James, what's under the sheet?" Asked Amber with a questionable look on her face.
"Yeah is it another surprise?" Asked Hugo adding on to Amber's last question.
"Yes it is Hugo, so you two will have to wait until we bring it to the ballroom to figure out what it is." Said James with an angry yet passive look on his face. James was not really fond of Hugo, even back when they were kids, but James didn't put much thought in his hate for the cocky, stuck up prince...that is until Sofia came along, James felt in his heart that he needed to protect Sofia from princes like him, but when Sofia actually gave him a chance and started to hang out with Hugo he didn't know what to do but try and get closer to her like that's what he was born to do.
"Hmm fine, you two are no fun, why won't you let me see the surprise before everyone else?" Said Amber with a pouty look on her face.
"Chill out Amber, it's called a surprise for a reason, just come on we're about to announce it before the ball is over." Said James taking Sofia's hand a dragging her to the ballroom stage and helping the staff set up while Amber and Hugo got lost in the crowd waiting for them to reveal what's under the big sheet.
"I guess the rumors about them are all lies, I still have a chance to win over Sofia... Or should I just stay with Amber, god this is a hard choice, I guess I'll see which one of the girls I like better." Thought Hugo looking over at Amber then looking up at the stage while Sofia and James grab everyone's attention to announce what's under the sheet.
"Okay, first off, thanks everyone for coming, can you believe it we finally made it out of Royal Prep! And so in celebration of that James and I not only planned this big ball-" James cut Sofia off to finish her sentence.
"But we also thought we should leave a little something for the school to show off how much it meant to us." Said James continuing for Sofia.
"So without further ado we would like to leave this little legacy to the school." Said Sofia signaling to the staff members to remove the sheet revealing a big mural of all the activities, clubs, and classes the school had to offer painted on on a giant canvas. All that could be heard was cheers of everyone after the mural was revealed, everyone was happy and looked as excited as Sofia and James were when they first thought of it. "James, I could say this ball was a success, don't you agree?" Sofia whispered at James with a smile on her face, James simply nodded and pulled Sofia for a hug.