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 lips, his jaw, his nose… every single part of him rendered her speechless. She had never seen another human who had been fashioned with such beauty and perfection. But then again, she remembered that he wasn't human to begin with.
She told herself to look away but for some reason, she couldn't. She felt like he somehow did something to her as soon as their eyes met.
When her hand touched his, she almost flinched as her heartbeat thudded even louder. He led her to stand right next to him before he let go of her hand. When he released her hand, she felt the cool air replace where his hand had been and it was then that she realized his skin wasn't cold. She had heard from human soldiers that Werewolves were cold blooded creatures and that they were as cold as corpses to the touch.
But his hands weren't cold at all. Why was that? How come his hand was warm? It couldn't just be her imagination!
Roselle didn't have the chance to even begin to ponder this puzzle any further because the ceremony started without delay. Anyone from the outside looking in would easily be able to tell that everyone couldn't wait for this wedding to end. The humans present were eager for the Werewolves to finally leave this place and their empire while the visiting Werewolves were certainly also looking forward to granting the humans' wishes to leave this place and go back to their own empire. For once, humans and Werewolves agreed on the same thing.
And thus, just as everyone hoped, the wedding hastily ended.
Roselle had attended other princesses' and nobles' weddings before and she almost wanted to smirk at the speed at which they carried out and ended what was meant to be a most special occasion; her wedding. But then again, she couldn't blame anyone. No one wanted this wedding in the first place. Every one of them, even the bride and the groom, was forced into this union.
A deep, quiet sigh escaped Roselle's lips when everyone started to quickly move and disperse. She couldn't believe how quickly the hall became empty.
Her husband offered his hand to her again. Of course, Roselle already prepared herself for this. She was going to the Northern Empire, the Werewolf's land, right after the wedding so she already said her goodbyes to her family before the Werewolf even arrived.
A little shaky, Roselle placed her hand in his. Her eyes were hot but she swore not to tear up. She looked at her mother as the Werewolf prince led her towards the door.
Her mother was crying, sobbing quietly where she stood, and it took all of Roselle to stop herself from following her lead. Roselle looked away, focusing on the path before her instead. As the newlyweds reached the door, Roselle halted and looked back one last time. She subconsciously gripped her husband's hand before she turned to him and finally stepped forward. This was all she could do from here on out; to bravely walk into her future, one step at a time, to find out what destiny had in store for her.
"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
Roselle frantically surveyed herself. There seemed to be nothing unusual with her body. The Werewolf prince didn't seem to have done anything to her while she was asleep, she just somehow knew it.She looked at his sleeping face again and her shoulders relaxed. A long sigh escaped her lips before she looked around the room. It was vast and the windows were covered with thick maroon curtains. The ceiling was also very high. It was a little dark but Roselle could tell it was daylight. How long did she sleep? Was she in the village across the Dark Valley?But judging from the size of this room, it somehow seemed to be a master room of a huge castle. Was there a huge castle in the very first village across the border? Or could it be that this wasn't the village anymore?The thought that she was finally in the foreign land, the land she and all her friends used to imagine as a place as good as hell, made her subconsciously hug herself. She didn't tremble in fear but there was a peculiar ch