"What?" you groaned as your Mother entered your quarters.

"That's no way to speak to the queen, dear," you mother sarcastically hummed as she sat on the end of your bed. "The men who rescued your father are coming here for dinner tonight. Please be in the grand dining hall before dusk."

You continued scrolling through the holonet, barely taking in you mom's words, mumbling inaudibly in response. She sighed and left your quarters, hoping you listened to her. As soon as she left, you turned the holonet off and rolled out of bed. You rolled out your shoulders as your feet touched the cold floor and walked over to your balcony doors. The falling sun over the mountains of your land signified dusk wasn't too far away.

Visitors for dinner were common but you've never had Republic soldiers in your presence. Were you supposed to dress dinner formal or royal formal? Your thoughts were interrupted by a knocking on your door. The source of the knock was the palace's laundry servant. She greeted you with a smile and handed you a garment bag, informing you that your mother picked it for tonight.

You thanked her and took the bag into your closet, unzipping it to reveal whatever you mother had planned for tonight. The lights hit the sparkle of the deep purple cocktail dress, reflecting all colors of the rainbow. You weren't expecting to have a night out dress for this type of occasion but you didn't mind one bit. Before putting the dress on, you decided to recomb your hair and touch up your makeup. You stood in front of the mirror for a moment and stared blankly at yourself. For a moment, the thought of these soldiers being attractive struck your mind. You snapped out of it and reapplied your liquid lipstick before making you way to the grand dining room.

Servants were running around mad, making sure everything was perfect. "Darling! Come to the foyer!" your mother yelled, rushing past you. You rolled your eyes and followed her at a distance.

"Mom, why do I-" you stopped in your words as your eyes met those of one of the soldiers. Your lips were parted slightly, his presence leaving you speechless.

"You must be Princess (Y/N). It's a pleasure to meet you," the soldier grinned, bowing sightly at you, "My name is Sergeant Hunter. This is Crosshair, Wrecker and Tech."

The paralyzed look on your face was difficult to shrug off, "Thank you for saving my father." You were completely notified by your petrified behavior, the last thing you were expecting was to fall head over heels for one of these men. Your mother noticed your lust and softly patted your back, bringing you back.

"Let's head to the dining room now, shall we?" your father asked, leading the way. You swallowed your breath and followed him, walking behind the group known as "The Bad Batch", though you couldn't see what was so bad about them.

"You look absolutely stunning tonight, Princess." Hunter smiled while pulling out a chair for you before winking at your mother, "clearly runs in the family."

This caused you to blush, looking at your mother, who was beaming a pleasant grin.

What you thought would be a standard "honor" dinner hosted by your father turned into something you actually seemed to enjoy. All four of the boys seemed much more laid back than the other guests you've had. You noticed that the one they called Wrecker was constantly needed nudges from Hunter to be more "formal." This was humorous to you.

The last thing you expected was for you to ask them about war stories. It was both a shock to you and your mother when you began asking about just that, making dinner last much longer than expected.

The sound of the clocking striking 2200 hummed through the palace, making you all realize how much time truly passed. Unfortunately, this meant goodbyes would be soon to come.

"It was a pleasure having you men in our palace. You are welcome back anytime," you father informed the boys, who all heard except for Hunter, who was still deep in conversation with you.

"(Y/N)," you father quickly called, getting you attention, "it is time to retire for the night."

You sighed and slowly rose from the table, Hunter following you exact motion. "Thank you for coming over for dinner," you softly smiled, going for a hand shake. Instead of a hand shake, Hunter pulled you in for a compassionate hug. You eyes widened as you hugged Hunter back, smiling against his shoulder.

"Hope to see you again. Soon princess," Hunter whispered, placing a soft kiss on the back of your hand before following the rest of the men out of the palace. You stood there motionless, realizing how you simply just let such an amazing man slip out of your grasp.

"I like him for you too," you mom smiled, giving you a wink and handing you a small piece of paper. "While you two were talking up a storm, I ask one of the other boys for his com link code. Figured you might want it."

Happiness beamed across your face as you took the piece of paper, "Thanks Mom." you chirped as you ran to your quarters, knowing EXACTLY what you planned on doing.