The Raven Princess

Hi. This is totally rewritten as I didn't really like the characters in the old version but this one is going to be a lot more exciting with a better plot, so enjoy!

“Mother, you know I’m allergic to dresses,” I moaned as she forced me in to a navy blue dress with a white lace collar. It looked nice against my skin, but the whole feeling of a dress repulses me.

“Just this once, for your birthday,” my mother reasoned. “Even Leon dressed up for tonight.”

“Damn right I did, so you’d better too,” he said as he strolled in, fiddling with the black tie he was wearing.

With his square jaw and unruly hair, Leon reminded me of our father, the father he can’t even remember.

I slipped on the navy heels Mother had paired with the outfit and led the way out of my dressing room and down the stairs to the Great Hall, where all my friends – actually, my friend, singular – and many people I didn’t know were seated for my 18th birthday ball.

Oh joy.

“Hello Ella,” I greeted my cousin, Princess Fenella Abbott, as I met her at the door and headed over to our table with her.

“Hey Lyra, how’s things?” Ella asked, her green eyes dancing with excitement. She always loved dances, the complete opposite of me.

 I sat down on the seat labelled with my name, between Ella and Felicity Harrington-Viner, the wife of my cousin Lorenzo. She’s two years younger than me, at sixteen, but Cathanians are known for marrying young, and the members of the royal family are known for marrying even younger. Princess Alexia Abbott and Princess Louise Raven, two of my first cousins, were sitting across from us and the boys – Leon, Pablo, Aaron, David and Lorenzo – were on the table on our right.

The Great Hall was decorated beautifully, the important families of Cathania sitting around square tables with tablecloths of red silk and white candles made of the finest beeswax.

The Viner family, the Capaldi clan, the Schellenbergs, Whitefields, Wotherspoons and Smythes – all gathered together to celebrate the Princess of Cathania’s birthday.

My birthday.

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With the dining over, the party was led by my mother, Queen Alice of Cathania, through to the Ballroom where an orchestra was playing a classical waltz and the next thing I know Daniel Viner – the extremely creepy brother of Felicity – was on front of me and asking for a dance.

“Sorry,” I paused, thinking of an excuse. “Lorenzo asked me for the first dance.”

I power-walked off and grabbed Lorenzo’s hand in desperation.

“Please, please, pretty please, dance with me,” I begged, looking up at his amused face.

“Why?”

“Because, Lord Harrington, I’m the Princess of Cathania and I demand a dance,” I said in a posh mock-English accent.

Smiling at my humour, he led me to the dance floor and whirled me around.

“Felicity’s going to be furious,” he whispered to me in fluent Catharian.

“Why? I’m your cousin, that’s just weird.”

He sighed heavily, blowing his shaggy brown hair off his face.  “She’s just really emotional.”

I dropped the topic and soon enough the dance had ended and I could see Daniel coming after me again.

I could see Alexia and Xavier Steel finish their dance on the other side of the room and headed over as quickly as possible.

Alexia was grinning broadly at Lord Steel and I smiled. There might be another royal engagement next year.