**I wrote a short prequel to this story, but it doesn't necessarily need to be read in order to understand this one. Enjoy!**
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Princess Lily sat on her throne and looked out at her kingdom. The people of Selvvia had gathered that night, not only for a community ball, to celebrate her twentieth Day of Taking, but also so that she could meet the gentlemen in her small kingdom, and start deciding on a mate. She looked out over the men and women of her kingdom, all varying degrees of palest white to deepest green, thinking it strange that her future partner was dancing in this hall at that very moment, sashaying over the dance floor, or standing over by the refreshments. Bodies twirled and stepped in time to the waltz, broadcasted by an orchestra in the corner of the ballroom. The haze of people and the vivid colors sent Lily's mind reeling as she looked out over her faithful subjects. This was the night that Nyx would step down from her position of Keeper and Queen of the Selvvian, and let Lily take her rightful place.
In Selvvia, it was traditional to have a human princess, who would marry a Selvvian gentleman and become queen, then after a number of years, it would be her duty to journey to the human world and kidnap a baby girl to become the next queen. Twenty years ago, on that day, the queen, Nyx, had crossed over to the human world and taken Lily, to be the princess. Princesses of Selvvia were chosen based on certain traits. The queen and Lily's adopted mother, Nyx had been chosen because of her naturally pointed ears. Lily had been chosen because of her enormous green eyes.
The king, Nyx's husband, had passed away long before Lily was born. Lily knew nothing of her birth father, or mother, for that matter, but she had long since come to terms with this. It was customary for the king and queen to keep as much of the princess's human life secret as was possible, to make her feel as though she was truly one of them.
Tonight, Lily looked out over the grand hall; ivy crept up the dirt walls, and entangled itself on the ceiling, creating an arch above her. Lily jumped as she felt a hand close over her small shoulder.
"Hello, Lily," whispered a familiar voice.
"Hello, mother," she answered.
"I hope everything is to your liking, my sweet."
Although they had been together for twenty years, Nyx had never seemed much like a mother to Lily. Maybe it was like that for all of the princesses. It was Nyx's responsibility to educate her, and prepare her for the job of queen, and she did that just fine, but nothing else.
"Yes, Nyx."
"You look so much like Maria, tonight, Lily."
"Who is Maria?" answered Lily, confused.
Abruptly, all the candles went out. All, except the one sitting on the small table next to Lilly's throne. The light cast an eerie glow on her pale skin, and accentuated her small chin, making it look hard and commanding in the dim light of the great hall. All eyes in the room were fixed on her, waiting for her to address them.
"It's time," Nyx whispered into her ear, and disappeared into the shadows.
Lily took a deep breath, and stood to address her people. "Selvvians," she announced, she had been practicing this speech for weeks and she was happy to find that her voice rang out, smooth and clear, "it is my greatest honor to present myself to you, for the first time, as your queen." The audience cheered its approval. "The only thing I need now... is my king." She sat, and looked out over the crowd. Turning to the Grand Minister, she whispered her blessing to commence with the ceremony.
Now was the time to pick her king. The Grand Minister held a scroll of all the young bachelors in the kingdom, and she would be introduced to all of them. It was going to be a long night. She had, of course, read over the list, but she didn't know many of the men. She was very proactive in her kingdom, and it hadn't left her much time for making friends.
"Ailia, Nalfar!" announced the Grand Minister.
A stubby man, no more than five feet tall, shuffled forward and kneeled before her. "Your majesty, I am Nalfar," he uttered nervously. All Lily could focus on was the anxious twitch going in his left ear. It made Lily feel slightly nauseated.
"Thank you, Nalfar. It is an honor," she lied.
The small man hurriedly scuffled away.
And so it went on, man after man introduced himself to Lily, and she politely dismissed each of them. The list went in alphabetical order, and by the time the Grand Minister got to the G's, Lily thought she was going to fall asleep. She rested her head on one hand. She hadn't really thought about what she would do when she found someone worth having a conversation with, but she was starting to think she wouldn't really need to worry too much about it.
Nyx leaned down and put her mouth to Lily's ear. "Sit up straight." She breathed darkly.
"Garitli, Malcolmath!"
Lily grudgingly adjusted herself into a more regal position.
Name after tedious name slipped through Lily's brain, not really focusing on any of them, until Tilthan, Seryth was introduced.
"Princess," he said softly, bending to caress her hand with his lips, "I am Seryth."
Speechless, Lily could only stare.
Seryth was the color of a forest at midnight, with eyes a dark shade of emerald. Though he walked very lightly, he was wearing thick-soled black boots. His inky black hair came down just under his ears.
"Please to... make your acquaintance," she murmured.
He smiled and nodded his head at her, and retreated back into the crowd.
After that, though she met briefly with all of them, Lily couldn't focus on any of her other potential suitors; the only person she could think of was Seryth.
That night, Lily lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling. She couldn't sleep. She got one night to decide on three men she wanted to get to know better, but the only person she was the slightest bit interested in was Seryth.
