The royal children were all in the family room, each doing various things that they liked to do to keep them busy while their parents spent time in an emergency meeting.

Prince Cooper Van Persie sat in front of a chess set on a table. He blew his messy brown hair off his forehead as his green eyes focused on what move he should make. 'Hmm, what is my next move?' He inquired of himself in his head.

Sitting on the opposite side, his younger brother, Prince Daniel, was watching his every move. Subconsciously, he ran his hand through his thick, fluffy brown hair, an anxious tick. His brown eyes focused on the chessboard, trying to anticipate his brother's move.

Allison gave a groan, her brown eyes flickered from her phone screen to the ceiling as she tipped her head back making her brown hair fall out of its neat bun. "How much longer are you two going to play that monotonous game? It is useless in real life." She inquired, looking at her elder brothers with a frown.

Daniel looked over at his sister as a frown grew on his lips as he looked at her. "It is not monotonous, Alli. It's the game of kings." He told her, crossing his arms against his chest. “I could go on about why it is a fantastic game, but you'd be bored a minute in.”

“Chess is all about anticipating your opponent's moves and cornering their king.” Cooper agreed with his brother, moving his rook a space and taking one of his brother's knight. "It helps you learn to plan and learn from your opponent." He gave his brother a playful smug look as he set it beside his side of the board. "And that is what you call a nice steal."

Daniel rolled his eyes at his brother's words, mentally cursing at losing his knight. "Oh, I see how you are going to be." He scoffed, moving his bishop across the board. "It is also good for staying one step ahead of what your opponent will do next, so now you make your move and take their piece.” He sat back in his chair with a smirk.

Cooper's eyes flickered from the chess board over to his younger sister. "Allison, you need to put down that phone and spend more time with us." He moved his bishop and hit the timer before looking at his sister with a knowing look.

Allison gasped dramatically at what her brother had said, she put her hand to her chest in mock offense to what he had said. "How come? I haven't been there that long." She emphasized the 'that' showing that she felt like she wasn't when she actually was.

Viviane laughed for a few moments, ending with a snort, her turquoise-blue eyes looked over at her sister. "Alli, all you do is take selfies and update your followers. It's hard to believe we're twins when you're that self centered." She closed her book, setting it on the table beside her while pushing back her brown side-french braid.

"I'm not self centered!" Allison snapped defensively with a frown, jumping to her feet and losing her cool. "I don't always take selfies. It's an occasional thing. Most of the time I'm trying to be a good role model for people, especially young girls, by giving out advice and encouragement." She crossed her arms and sat back down on the couch.

“You are a young girl,” Brian snickered and rolled his blue eyes that sparkled as he pretended to have a plastic sword duel with an imaginary person. "I'll believe it when I see it." He smarted off, resting the tip of the sword on the ground.

“Checkmate.” Daniel smugly declared, motioning towards having Cooper's king cornered. “First time in a month I actually have one, dear elder brother. Are you losing your touch as an heir?” He teased playfully, a chuckle escaping his lips.

“Now, now, I wasn't solely focused, don't get too smug. You just got lucky.” Cooper smiled and shook his head while rolling his eyes. He turned his attention towards Allison who was taking another selfie with a biscuit in her hand.

"When will you let any of us follow you? I don't even follow you, and I'm your twin! We shared a womb!” Viviane exclaimed, making various hand gestures. She had always wondered but had gotten side tracked so much she never gave it so much thought. “Unless you're hiding something."

"I'm not hiding anything," Allison defensively said, crossing her arms over her chest and gripping her phone tighter. "I just don't want you to tag me in anything embarrassing." She begrudgingly went into her social media and accepted her siblings' follow requests. "Done, are you all happy now?"

"Oh yes, very much happy." Daniel sarcastically said, giving an equal sarcastic smile. He couldn't help but poke a bit more fun at his younger sister. “Thank you, your highness, for accepting our lowly following requests.”

Viviane quickly grabbed her phone, unlocked it, and pulled up her twin's account. She started to scroll through the pictures, her brows furrowing. "You do take a lot of selfies and is that your breakfast?" She asked, her eyes flickering from the screen to her sister.

Allison rolled her eyes, clicking the button to turn the screen on her phone off. "It's what my Alli-cats want," She indifferently commented, crossing her arms over her chest after setting down her phone.

“Alli-cats?” Brian raised an eyebrow, biting his lip to hold back a snicker. The name was equally clever as it was stupid in his opinion. “How creative." He sarcastically commented, setting his plastic sword down on the coffee table.

Allison threw her hands up in the air and groaned. "This is why I didn't want you to follow me. They love the fandom name I've given them, and you know how much I love cats.” She bounced back immediately at the mention of the furry felines, her eyes sparkling. “Shame Mum and Dad won't allow us any pets.”

Viviane sighed, tapping her nails on the side of the couch while her other hand twisted a lock of hair around her finger. "Where do you think Mum and Dad are? They should have been here by now. It isn't like them to be late with a meeting. They've always been punctual, especially Mum." She glanced towards the grandfather clock in the middle of the back wall.

Allison paused for a moment hearing what her sister had said. "Hmm, I have no idea. Mum and Dad are never this late. It's a cumbersome feeling, quite peculiar, unorthodox for them." She looked away from her phone, for that moment a feeling of something bad was going or was happening.

Viviane looked over at the doors, bouncing her foot and waiting for the doors to open. 'Why do I have a bad feeling about this?' She thought to herself as her stomach twisted into a tight knot. She couldn't stop the anxiety and worry swelling up inside her, causing her to shift uncomfortably on the couch.

Cooper watched his sister, noticing her anxious body language before looking back at the door again. "Looking at the door isn't going to make them come any sooner." He leaned back in his chair and stretched his arms over his head.

Daniel agreed with a nod, putting all the white pieces on his side and the black on his brother's side. "Ah, like the one phrase once said: A watched pot never boils.” He raised his hand and extended his pointer finger into the air before moving to grab the chess pieces.

"I don't want to wait!" Allison whined like a child, kicking her legs in the air like she was throwing a tantrum. "I want to see what is holding Mum and Dad up." She stood up from the couch, her phone in her hand. "I need to know because Vivane and I have this bad feeling that something bad is or had happene—."

Viviane sighed. Sometimes she hated twin intuition and how Allison could easily declare her emotions to the wild word. “And that is why they aren't here.” She finished the sentence for her sister in twin fashion.

Cooper looked over at his sisters, placing his hands on the table he stood up. "Alli, Vivi, they'll be here soon. Try not to get yourself in a tizzy over something beyond our control." He reassured his sister, albeit a bit unsure whether he believed his own words.

Just then, their parents, Queen Natalia and King Vincent rushed through the doors. The doors hitting into the walls with a thud, not even the door stoppers were able to stop them. Both of their faces held a worried look on them as they walked up to their kids.

Natalia pushed her curled shoulder-length brown hair behind her ear. Her eyes azure blue failed to hide her worry she felt bubbling up inside. She had never been one to hide her emotions that well, she tended to wear them on her sleeves.

Vincent pushed up his crown, which was falling off his head, and did a number on his short brown hair. His intense brown eyes were oddly mirroring the same worry that his wife had. “Children,” He curtly greeted them, his voice slightly terse.

"Mum!" Allison exclaimed, running up to her mom and hugging her tightly, burying her head in her mother's stomach. "I was so worried about you." She declared, her stomach settling down from the flip flops it had been doing. "You to Dad. I didn't forget you."

Cooper was glad to see his parents walk into the room. He took the more calm approach to inquiring about their absence for so long. "You were held up for quite some time." He mused, walking up to his parents, putting his hands behind his back.

His eyes flickered to the nervous look his parents exchanged. He couldn't miss the tension in their posture, the way they kept looking at each other, how they kept shifting on their feet. Classic signs of anxiousness and stress.

"Long story." Natalia's words were spoken quickly with a hint of annoyance, though she did not mean for her words to be that sharp. "We will explain later​. Now go back up your largest suitcase." She commanded, clapping her hands at her children and strangely withholding her normal please.

Viviane frowned and furrowed her eyebrows, skeptically looking between her parents. "Why?" She was just as skeptical of her expression as she thought. 'Mum has never asked us to pack a suitcase before… we've never even left the palace… I'm not sure we even have a suitcase to pack… and she never has not said please either.'

"Um, Mum, you're worrying me. What's going on?" Allison asked, speaking up, her voice almost weak with worried poking up in her voice. She smoothed down her skirt before gripping the metallic fabric between her hands and clenched it within her fists.

"Go! I will explain later." Natalia snapped at her children, her eyes pleading with her children to just go do what she was asking and motioned for them to hurry along. “I am your mother, you do as I say, no questions asked. You hear me?”

The kids nodded, heeding what their mother had urgently said to them. They could take a hint, and although they had many questions, he obliged without hesitation. They looked at each other as they rushed towards their rooms, their shoes tapping against the marble floor.

Vivian twisted the ribbons on her dress around her fingers. "Why do you think they are acting that way?" She asked, her voice laced with worry as she stopped at her door. "They have never acted that way before. She's never snapped at us or raised her voice."

Cooper, being the eldest, tried to rack his brain for a reasonable answer. Though, he came up short. "I have no idea. I have never seen them so on edge. It is almost like any moment something bad could happen." He replied, shaking his head as he pushed open the door to his room. 

Viviane hesitated going into her room, chewing on her lip, stopping at the door as her other siblings except for Cooper went into their rooms. "That's what I'm worried about. If anything could happen at any moment, is packing the smartest choice? Should we not immediately flee?" She asked, searching for her elder brother's face.

Cooper sighed, knowing she had a great point. It was confusing, and he wished he had a better answer or even some reassurance for Viviane. "Let's just do what they say Vivi. They have their reasons." He said, pushing open the door to his room.

Once inside their rooms, they rushed around getting their clothes and other personal items that they needed. They didn't give much thought to what they needed other than what they'd need for day to day life. They put them in two suites each and a duffle bag, before exiting their rooms.

"What if it is a drill?" Allison suddenly asked, rolling two large suitcases to the middle of the hallway along with a duffle bag nested on one of them. "Like that fire drill we had last week? That was unnerving and did not do well for my panic attacks."

Daniel shook his head, giving a long sigh as he walked up to his sister. "I doubt it is a drill. They were too serious and realistic about it," He told her, shifting his gaze to his other siblings' room before setting his suitcases down and closing the doors behind him.

Viviane glanced over at her sister with a frown. "Agreed, though still. What other explanation could it be for using having to do this? A real threat? An attack? No, we'd go to the safe room if it was an attack. Would anyone ever think about attacking us? We don't exactly have anything special about your small kingdom." She mused logically, not knowing what else it could be.

Brian came from his bedroom and closed his door, followed by Cooper who did the same thing. "One we may not like." He ominously said, earning an odd expression from his siblings.

"One we may not like?" Allison echoed, her eyes growing wide before frowning and furrowing her brows. "I am a bit lost, can you clarify what you mean?" She asked, moving her hands to her hips with a serious expression on her face.

"Ignore, Brian," Cooper sighed, glancing at his other siblings before looking back at Allison and offering a kind smile. "Trust me, it is best if they tell us instead of jumping to worrisome conclusions." He suggested to his sister, reaching out and placing a hand on her shoulder.

Allison groaned and begrudgingly crossed her arms. "Why do we have to keep waiting for everything! They are making us wait to know what happened! Not fair." She whined, throwing her head back after stomping her foot on the floor.

Cooper gently squeezed her shoulder, not impressed with her acting like a child who didn't get the candy they begged for. "Life's not fair Alli. We can't change it, so it's best to leave it alone and deal with it just as things are."

Allison looked down at the floor and ran her pink kitten-heeled shoe over the floor. "I know… I still don't have to like it." She shifted her suitcase in her other hand since the current hand was sweaty and slipping on the handle.

"Well, I do hate this," Viviane crossed her arms as she rolled her two suitcases into the hall. "All this sneaking and packing, it feels like I'm walking on eggshells. I have never been one to choose to do such things, especially since I have no secrets.”

“No secrets? You're a tattletail, that's what you are,” Allison narrowed her eyes at her sister. It was true, Viviane never kept a secret nor did she have one, everyone knew she'd tell the secret since she didn't believe in keeping things from others and to always be honest.

"I am not a tattletail." Viviane countered her twin sister, before letting out a huff of air and puffing out her cheeks for a few moments. "Anyways, do remember, Mum and Dad are not the sneaky type, so, whatever is going on is serious. On that note, we shouldn't speculate and jump to conclusions.”

Brian glanced towards the ceiling, furrowing his brows in thought. "They were sneaky and I wonder if this had anything to do with the other day." He wondered aloud, recalling something very odd that happened.

Viviane looked at her brother, her eyes skeptically narrowing at him as she studied him for a moment. "What do you mean: had anything to do with the other day?" She asked, trying to piece together what he could mean.

Allison frowned, shaking her head in disappointment. "You mean you have an idea why this could be happening and you didn't tell us?" She asked, her voice raising a few octaves while crossing her arms over her chest and narrowing her eyes.

Brian put just​ hands up in defense and shook his head. "A lot has been going on, it skipped my mind, forgive me. I forgot after getting sidetracked and I couldn't find you guys to say anything." He clarified, then began to explain himself. "Mum and Dad were talking with someone over the phone. They seemed nervous and tried to keep their voices down but I still heard faint words."

Cooper gripped the strap of his duffle bag and hummed. Just the thought of his parents speaking in hushed voices over the phone wasn't a pleasant feeling to have. "What faint words did you, by chance, hear?" He inquired, hoping to gain more information.

Brian shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. “I heard our names mentioned, and something about how worried they were and this couldn't be happening again.” He replied, then quickly added. “Duchess Nari, and Duke Jae were in the room, I heard their voices."

"Why would they be talking secretly to Duchess Nari and Duke Jae?" Viviane pondered, tapping her foot casually on the floor. "I doubt it has anything to do with Tori's birthday in a few months, or even your Cooper, but we'd be in on it if it was. If they were worried and it happened again wouldn't it pertain to what happened to Coop—"

“All right, let's go children." Natalia told them, approaching them and putting a pin in the conversation. She ushered her kids down the hall as she kept looking over her shoulder as they walked.

Brian cocked his head to the side as he hurried beside her. "Mum, where are we going? Why can't you just tell us what is going on? Why are we leaving with such secrecy?" He asked, speaking for everyone, or at least what everyone was thinking in their head.

Natalia waved him off in dismissal, her expression cross. "Please stop asking questions." She kept her voice in a low soft tone so no one else could hear her. "I'm not going to answer them, not here, not now."

Brian nodded with a small sigh, having to give in and listen to his mother. His heart weighing a bit heavy and a uncomfortable knot forming in his stomach. "As you wish." He still was curious, but he let it go for now.

A worried look grew on Allison's face while a knot mirroring her expression, grew in the pit of her stomach. "You're scaring us . . . is there anything you can tell us right now to put our minds at ease?" She asked hesitantly, feeling sick to her stomach.

"What did I say?" Natalia snapped, her voice terse as she shook her head. "Stop asking questions until I say you can." She chided her children, wishing more than anything they'd heed her words. “I mean it this time. Utter another word and you will regret it.”

The children exchanged looks and nodded, falling into an uncomfortable silence with a million questions bouncing around in the head.

Vincent opened the doors to the garden when they arrived. "Stay quiet, say no words," He whispered to them as his eyes panned over his children. "Just walk normally and don't do anything that looks remotely suspicious, while keeping your suitcases towards the inside of the hedge."

He looked up and scanned the grounds, there seemed to be no guards around here. It must've been the time when the guards changed. "Let's go and be quick." He instructed as he and his family briskly walked through the doors.

♛〰♛〰♛〰♛〰♛〰♛〰

A/N:
Well, here I am again with a slightly different genre of a novel (which I have been working on for months). So this is another one of my babies if you couldn't tell and I put so much work into all my books.

Edit: I have been doing a slightly soft edit which is mainly just updating these chapters to my new writing style. I am using Grammarly keyboard because I am unable to use the website since they updated it. Bleh.

Chapter Talk:
So, we have met the royal family, and have the first part of how they end up in America. Which is where I wanted to start this story off at.

I am still trying to figure out where to put Amaryllis at but I don't think that really matters.

Edit: I've cut the original chapter in half so it's not as long. I also took out a great deal of other stuff that didn't need to be in.

Thanks for reading!