The Alpha and His Princess

Akira

I stared into the reflection in the mirror as my handmaid plaited my long hair down my back. The reflection stared back at me deadpan.

I had pushed back my feelings of insecurity and fear better than I thought I could.

"Princess Kira, the prince is going to think you're lovely." The comment was less about kindness and more about duty.

"Thank you Lucy." I managed to keep my voice level. I was a better actress than I gave myself credit for too.

Once Lucy had finished, she laid the long tail over my shoulder. I could see the ribbon and flowers she had braided into my hair. It was a traditional hairstyle for marriage here.

Though our wedding wasn't tonight, today would be the very first time I met Damon, the crown prince of our closest bordering country and my betrothed.

In the vastness of the world we were small countries but our ability to be self sufficient and export goods made our home seem grander. The rest of the world left us alone to deal with bigger fish.

But tensions had been high between our two territories. Apparently there was some long forgotten crime committed but the stories had been twisted and changed over the years. Rumors, lies and exaggerations had been spread throughout the entire country.

The people of Candora were warriors by tradition though that was ancient history now, but their country had many secrets and rumors surrounding it. Based on the rumors they were historically a crude and vengeful people who loved blood and war and in an effort to avoid such war, I was the diplomatic approach my guardians had chosen.

My guardians. I internally rolled my eyes. The word indicated protection and that was not something I found here in the place that should be home.

But I was of royal blood, however I was not the blood child of the sitting king and queen of Iria.

One of the first memories I had was of the story of how my parents died.

The story was tragic and it went that my mother Princess Thena was first in line to the throne, the true queen of Iria.

And she had been a whore.

She had found love outside the arranged marriage she was born into. With a poor, orphaned stable boy. Before her coronation she ran away from home and married him in secret.

Not only had she married him in a secret ceremony but when she ran away she was already pregnant with me.  My mother was far into her pregnancy when my father died in a "fight" on his way home to her.

I learned through listening to the maids, and guards and cooks that the rumor was that he was murdered. Apparently a bounty had been placed on his head by the family of the man she was supposed to marry. The soon to be queen, my mother Thena had entrusted me to her former handmaid the one braiding my hair now and gave me my name before dying after my birth. The handmaiden was tasked with returning me to the royal family to keep me safe.

I was told by Lucy that she had lost too much blood during my birth but others believed the news of my fathers death sent her into premature labor and without my father she did not have the strength to fight to live.

Not even enough strength for her daughter.

That was as much as I knew about either of them. I didn't even know my father's name it was a secret no one dared whisper.

What I did know was that I was a cursed child. Destined for an unhappy life, if my years living under this roof was proof.

The handmaiden brought me back to the royal family. I was left in the care of my Uncle, the now crowned King of Iria and his new bride. As my next of kin they became my guardians (there was that word again) and they raised me.