Young Lady, they're here… the Werewolf prince is here."
Roselle's shoulders immediately jacked up when she heard the shaken voice of her maid. Sweat dripped on her back as she shot a nervous look at her mother who had just arrived inside her room to check on her.
"He.. The.... They,.. mother." Roselle subconsciously grabbed her mother's dress. She was clueless of what to do next. She thought she had readied herself enough in the last few weeks but it seemed like the fear and uncertainty that she had on her mind still threatened to crash her resolve now that the moment had finally arrived.
"Hush, girl." her mother said as she gave her daughter a calming hug, but the concern in her eyes gave her away. "Don't worry, you can do this my dear." she whispered as she gently rubbed Roselle's back. "Don't forget the reason you have to do this, Roselle, your…"
Her mother kissed her head and though she didn't look shaken, Roselle could sense the anxiousness and uneasiness within her mother.
Roselle took a deep breath. "Yes, mother, if it's for father." she replied, as she flashed a forced and fake smile toward her mother. "I can do this."
"What a good girl..." Her mother's arms wrapped around her again for one last hug and after a second, her mother nodded at her maid.
"I am going to meet the guests now while you get ready," she told Roselle and after giving her daughter one last encouraging smile, Roselle's mother finally left the room.
Roselle closed her eyes and her maid immediately hovered around her. She tried her best to calm her pounding heart, talking to herself inwardly and telling herself it would be alright, that everything would be alright. She was so focused in hardening her resolve that she was a little startled when the maid finally spoke.
"You look stunning, Young Lady." Roselle's eyes flew towards the mirror and she studied her reflection. Her hair was so beautifully arranged; her face painted just enough to emphasize her natural, innocent, maiden features.
Roselle stared at herself quietly. It had finally arrived, the day of her wedding. She used to fantasize about this day when she was younger, daydreaming about how magical and wonderful it would be to marry the man of her dreams. She had seen herself smiling with so much happiness and excitement and delight as she marched down the aisle towards her dream groom.
But none of these fantasies of hers were going to happen. Instead of excitement and delight, her heart was filled with dread and unease. Well, nobody could blame her because like most of the ladies in the highest echelon of power, Roselle couldn't choose whom to marry. She had mistakenly, stupidly thought she was safe from all these things because she wasn't a princess. However, she was the daughter of the most powerful noble family in the entire Empire. In the end, she couldn't escape this fate. In fact, she couldn't believe she actually had it worse than anyone else she knew, probably even more than the princesses of any Empire in existence. At least those princesses were married off to emperors and high ranking military generals from their neighboring human empires.
Yes, she too, was about to marry a prince but… unlike those princesses, her husband-to-be wasn't human… he was a Werewolf. And Werewolves were their enemy, the human's mortal enemies.
"It's time, milady." The handmaid's voice almost made her jump from her seat again. She let out another long and deep sigh - noble ladies like her did not express their dissatisfaction audibly - before she stood up with her head held high, and walked towards the door.
The door at the entrance was opened for her and she stepped gracefully over the sill before proceeding calmly along the corridor. She couldn't count how many times she had taken a deep breath as she walked towards those doors, doors which looked more daunting with each step she took. With one last step, she finally stood just before the large double doors leading towards the wedding hall.
'Be strong, Roselle. For the sake of your family and the entire empire,' she whispered to herself again and again. She squared her shoulders and looked up once again as she waited for the doors to open. The moon and the stars were brightly shining down on her.
In her daydreams, her wedding day always took place on a cool sunny day where she would be surrounded by falling petals dancing in the wind. But fate seems to have its way, who knew she was going to get married in the middle of the night and to a creature of the night?
The sky was clear and calm and peaceful. The stars blinked at her but even the calmness of the sky couldn't ease the turmoil that was bubbling inside her. Her pulse was racing and all she could do was take deep breaths, again and again. Her hands were shaking and it took all her strength to keep them still again.
Her presence was then announced and at long last, the procession began.
The hall she walked into screamed of luxury and was a feast to the eyes, but contrary to all the beautiful grandeur that filled the room, the atmosphere was, as expected, tense and heavy. It was extremely rare for Werewolves and humans to be present under one roof. There were occasions, of course, where the two races stood under the same roof but the difference this time was that they weren't intent on killing each other. Because of this wedding, the Werewolves and humans agreed to a ceasefire, the first one in history.
As she walked closer to the altar, her long, tapered fingers clutched her dress hard - an action that went unnoticed by the guests because her hands were swallowed by the voluminous folds of her gown - but Roselle's eyes remained fixed on the floor. Her face was still facing forward but her eyes were trained on that single spot, always 5 feet away in front of her on the floor. She couldn't relax. She felt like she was walking on a small, thin stretch of road between Werewolf and human armies on the battlefield right before they collided and killed each other. Above all, she felt like a small, innocent little mice voluntarily walking to the cat's mouth to be eaten, despite being promised that her soon-to-be husband and the Werewolves would never hurt her.
The tension was so thick in the air that all she wanted to do was turn around and run away, but she didn't. She couldn't.
Roselle couldn't hear anything but the loud pounding of her own heartbeat. She couldn't even raise her eyes to take a peek at her husband-to-be because she was terrified! All her encounters with Werewolves terrified her to the core. In addition, she hadn't seen that many of them, but five years ago, she had come across a captured Werewolf. The Werewolf had had his sharp teeth bared, snarling with disgust and rage at his captors, and his eyes had glowed golden yellow which was a stark contrast to his Ash coloured hairy skin and huge body. This Werewolf's appearance had horrified Roselle. The same was true of the Werewolves who attacked her carriage a year ago.
She was scared of all Werewolves. All humans feared Werewolves. Werewolves were the villainous monsters that mothers always used to scare their children when they go out at night. And yet, here she was, about to marry one of them.
Lost in her own fears, Roselle didn't realize that she had reached the altar and she was instantly pulled back to the present when a hand appeared in her view. She almost stumbled in shock. Staring at the hand, Roselle swallowed. She just knew this was the hand of the Werewolf prince she was going to marry.
Slowly, she lifted her eyes, her gaze moving from his hand, up to his elbow, across to his abdomen before stopping on his chest. She breathed in silently before she continued upwards, finally stopping on his face.
And the moment their eyes met… Roselle's heart momentarily stopped.
The man before her looked nothing like she had been expecting. His eyes were golden but they looked so beautiful. His fangs weren't showing. In fact, he seemed to have no fangs at all. And… he wasn't as hairy as the Werewolves she had encountered before. He didn't have that werewolf appearance nor do he have a pointy nose.He was hairy compared to humans, but he wasn't that hairy like all the other Werewolves she had previously seen. And the most striking thing of all was that… he was just… breathtaking.Roselle was lost in a trance but was immediately jolted back to the present when she heard someone clear their throat.She couldn't take her eyes off his as she slowly lifted her hand to place it in his outstretched one. His eyes were golden yellow, akin to the bright moon, and they were full of life, as if there were many stars swirling within them. Then there were his lashes… they were so indecently long and thick for a man. His
"Scared?" His deep and masculine voice echoed inside the carriage causing the already tensed Roselle to flinch. She realized that she was clutching her dress so hard that her knuckles had turned white. She kept her face looking outside the window, blankly staring at the palace that they were just married in, as it slowly disappeared from her view.With a deliberate slowness, Roselle turned to face him. When she lifted her face, his perfect face graced her eyes. Only one thought ran through her mind as she looked at him. If only… If only, he was human.She answered him with a shake of her head. Of course, that was a lie. She was scared to death. It didn't help that her husband… yes, her husband was such a gorgeous creature, because she knew what was really hidden behind all that beauty and perfection."I… I thought w-werewolves didn't ride in carriages," she stammered, saying the first thing her mind could think of that had nothing to do with
The inside of the carriage was enveloped with silence. The prince simply remained still, closing his eyes as if he had shut himself down.The night was getting deeper and Roselle could now feel the fatigue and dizziness from the rollercoaster of emotions from the day that even though she wanted to ponder her situation more, her mind began to float like clouds drifting aimlessly. She had been unable to sleep the few days before her wedding because of thoughts about her wedding and the Werewolf she was going to marry so she felt a little like an Undead Creature. She felt lightheaded and dizzy and she tried to find the right position for her to sleep, but to her dismay, whenever she did manage to nod off, the carriage bounced on the rough patches on the road and she was awakened again. At times, it was so bad that she nearly bumped her head against the wall.This was the first time she had travelled by night, but Roselle knew she had to endure this. Her wedding was a secr
"No one's allowed to hurt you, not even me. You have nothing to be scared about," he added gently and before Roselle realized it, as though he had cast a bewitching spell on her, she obeyed.He shifted and made room for her and then she found herself half lying on him with her back to his chest and his arm wrapped around her, holding her, keeping her tucked against him as the carriage lurched forward. It seemed her fatigue and dizziness had given her away because of how little resistance she had against his irresistible offer of comfort. The back of her head settled on his solid and hard chest, which suddenly felt like a cushion, as she relaxed comfortably.This was the first time she had experienced anything like this. She had never let any man hold her this way before. She found it overwhelming because, even in her lightheaded state, her body reacted in a strange way as he held her. And the most surprising thing was she didn't hate it. She had thought she would despise any physical
The sight of her surroundings made her swallow and goosebumps crawled on her skin. It wasn't just because of the biting cold, it was mostly because the valley felt absolutely eerie. In fact, eerie might still be an understatement to describe the place. All the countless trees were coal black and leafless as if they were all scorched to death. Black ravens were settled on the tree branches and they all looked like they were staring straight at them. Roselle couldn't see any plant that seemed to still be alive.A thick layer of snow had iced the ground. The fog was also thick that even though it was still morning, it already felt like twilight. It felt like the darkness would soon settle in and she imagined those notorious beasts suddenly appearing from the thick mist surrounding them."I- I think we should go on," she stammered.Romeo's head whipped around to face her."But you're clearly –""I'm fine.""You're not."Roselle met his gaze and was surprised at what she saw in his moon-li
Bone-chilling growls filled Roselle's ears as soon as the carriage door was closed. Her eyes were still wide and her hand was left hanging in midair in a failed attempt to stop her husband from leaving. She knew by the monstrous sounds alone that the beasts had come. Why? It was not even nighttime yet!Roselle's throat ran dry. Her face became even paler as she noticed the sounds becoming louder and louder. The beasts were approaching closer and it seemed that there weren't just two or three of them. It sounded like a whole tribe had come for them. Her hands flew to her heart as the fear spread throughout her entire body. What was going to happen? Was she going to die here?Dull sounds of what seemed like a sword slashing into flesh filled the air and the growls became more violent. She felt the earth-shaking thuds which caused the carriage to shake. She wanted to hear Romeo's voice but all she could hear was the overwhelming sounds of battle that she never wanted to hear. "Please, do
The poor little bunny moved and peeked at him through her silver-blond locks but the moment their eyes met, she flinched and buried her face again. Romeo's eyebrows twitched from the realization that the bunny was scared of him, not at the dead beasts that were scattered around him. He shut his eyes and when he opened them again, his eyes were no longer golden-red. It had became a silver coloured eye He ran his fingers through his hair and patiently, he tried to coax the bunny once more. Slowly, he climbed inside the carriage, moving very carefully as he approached and squatted before her. "The beasts are dead. You're safe now. No one can hurt you," he said, but the girl still didn't move. Romeo knew that there was no way it would be easy for this little terrified bunny to crawl back to him again after what she saw. However, he could see that she was on the verge of freezing herself to death. Glancing at the crumpled blanket on the carriage floor, Romeo picked it up. "At least take
The men creased their brows, with heads cocked to one side. However, despite the confusion which were visibly portrayed on their faces, everyone immediately obeyed and took off their cloaks."Give them to me," Romeo ordered and once again, the men glanced at each other, except David who had kept his eyes set on the Werewolf prince.One by one, the men approached the carriage, single file and handed their cloaks which they had flicked off earlier to remove any dust and dirt and all neatly folded, to their prince. The Werewolf prince's face was so serious that no one dared question what he was about to do. The men could only wait to see what he intended to do with all those cloaks. And then, they watched him carefully and slowly wrapped the human girl with their cloaks.Their eyes widened in shocked surprise, mouths hanging open speechlessly. Their prince was moving so damned slowly that to them, a turtle might be moving faster than him. Werewolves move quick and it was no difference fo