The Dark Prince

Kingdom Of Israel

10 years later
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I flinched as another bobby pin stabbed my head.

"Ow" I yelped as I tried to swat Ingrid's hand away. She slapped my fingers back down to my lap and went back to rearranging by hair.

I looked at myself in the mirror as she moved locks around to make the big, elegant bun atop my head.

"Owww" I groaned again as she pulled hard on a piece of hair.

"Will you stop whining" she scowled me. Her already permanent frown dipped down even more.

Her shiny black hair was pulled back into a tight bun so I could see the sharp lines of her face. I saw the age starting to show in her cheeks, but she'd kill me if I'd ever mention it.

With her long finger nails and menacing demeanor, I had thought she was a witch when I was younger.

But after growing up with her taking care of me night and day, I know that the harshness is just a facade.

I tried not to flinch as she put the last pin in. I already knew this hairdo was going to give me a headache.

"Now go put on your dress" she said as she rushed me out of my chair. "Hurry, your already ten minutes late."

I scrambled over to the fitting table and stood on it. Ingrid came over and layed the dress down as I stepped into it.

She pulled it up my body and layed the straps over my shoulders. The dresses here were way more extravagant then the ones worn in the Kingdom of Eden.

Back home, we used to dress simple but formal. In the Kingdom of Israel, everyone's dressed in regal and over the top outfits.

My dress is a velvet royal blue that had 4 different layers. Each one more tulle than the last.

The ruffles make me look like I'm swimming in waves. The gems that go up from the bodice to my neck shine and glimmer.

I'm used to the weight of the dresses by now but I'm never used to the tightness.

Ingrid grabs the strings at the back of the dress and pulls. The dress squeezes my body, making me feel like I can't breathe.

Thank godness Ingrid taught me how to look relaxed and walk normally with these dresses on. If she hadn't, I'd look like a wobbly mess.

She finished tightening my dress and accessorized me quickly. I picked my shoes off the floor and slipped them on.

"Hurry yourself" Ingrid said hastily. "The King will be furious about the delay."

I huffed an annoyed breath. I had snuck out this morning and rode through the woods. I had lost track of time and was now late for the banquet.

Ingrid was right, King Roman would be enraged with me for having to stall the banquet so long for my arrival. I'd probably receive another lashing for this. I hoped not, for my lashing wounds from last week had just begun to heal.

I looked at myself briefly in the mirror before leaving. I flattened my skirt and adjusted the thick collar on my neck.

I had worn this collar day in and day out for as long as I can remember.

King Roman got his top scientists to make it. It prevents me from using my powers. From the stories I've heard, the scientists had to travel all the way to the Kingdom of Saelan to get the materials for it.

The only way to take the collar off is a key that only King Roman has.

The collar has never left my neck since the day I came here. King Roman knows what I can do with my powers and I'm too dangerous