Prince and Prejudice

“Where is she?!” My mother exclaimed, her gray eyes frantically searching for my sister who was nowhere to be found. “She should be here somewhere,” I said, hoping to appease her but even I knew that no matter where we searched we were not going to find her. Orla was gone, and I had no idea where.   “Keep searching. I want her found immediately!” My mother, the Queen of Dossoba, ordered the army of maidservants who were currently checking every nook and cranny for my missing sister. However, I wasn’t sure whether they should be spending so much time searching for someone who was well and truly gone and just focus on telling the groom’s family that the wedding was off.  “Mother, I don’t think—” she cut me off.  “Don’t you dare say what I know you wish to say. We are not going to tell King Delray that this wedding is not going to occur. Do you have any idea the amount of shame that would bring upon our house?! Our reputation will be ruined. All this wealth that you take advantage of is going to go down the drain if we don’t find Orla and get her ready in time for the wedding.” My mother’s face turned red from shouting all this in a single breath but we both knew that no matter how much she shouted and screamed Orla was not going to come back. It was obvious that she had no intention of marrying Prince Arkin.  “But Mother, what are we going to do? The guards have been searching the palace since the sun has risen and there is still no sign of her. She is gone, Mother, and we need to tell King Delray. He needs to know. Hiding this fact is going to cost us dearly.” I tried to reason with her, but I had a feeling my words were falling on deaf ears.  “I don’t care!” She looked at the giant clock hanging on the wall of my sister’s chambers. “We have less than half an hour until they arrive and Orla better be found by then.”  “And what if she isn’t? What then?” I asked, hating the fact that my family would resort to lies and deceit in order to protect their reputation, just so they can build stronger ties with the Kingdom that ruled us all.  She locked her eyes with mine. “Then I shall be forced to resort to extreme measures and then no one shall be safe.” With those sinister words, she turned on her heels and marched out of Orla’s room.  I sighed and sat down on her bed which was now a mess as the maidservants turned it upside down just looking for the owner. This was insane, why would Orla agree to a bond she had no intention of forming? If she did not intend to marry Prince Arkin, then why did she agree to it?  King Delray came to meet my father a few months ago, asking for Orla’s hand in marriage for their only son Prince Arkin. She had plenty of time to cancel the wedding but she did not say a single word to any one of us. As far as I knew my sister was extremely happy to be marrying the future King of Oyehan; after all she was going to be the Queen of all the lands. And though I knew my family’s greed pushed them to accept this proposal, it left a bitter taste in my mouth knowing that the Prince was going to get a wife who only married him for his wealth and did not love him.  Why do you care? You know exactly what Prince Arkin thinks of you.  My heart twisted with pain with the knowledge of just how much Prince Arkin hated me. His feelings shouldn’t have mattered to me if only he hadn’t been my best friend once so long ago. Yes, he never told me he loved me, but he was kind to me. We used to spend time together.  He was my friend.  But now he couldn’t even bear to be in the same room with me, let alone look me in the eyes. And why would he, when every time he did so he would see just how ugly I was. And Prince Arkin avoided ugly, at all cost.  “Your Majesty, we have looked everywhere but there is no sign of Princess Orla. I don’t know what more can we do.” One of Orla’s maidservants rushed over, wringing her hands together, worry clouding her pretty features.  I sighed, hoping there was some way I could put this girl at peace. “I don’t know. Hopefully the Queen would understand that she is not coming back.” “She will kill us.” The maid whimpered. “She will never show us any mercy.”  I stood up and covered her hands with mine. “No, no, she is not going to kill you. I will make sure that the Queen does not hold any of you responsible.” I hope I wasn’t giving her empty promises as Mother was not great at listening to me. Since the incident Mother seemed to resent me and did her best to avoid me as much as she could. It hurt me, of course it did, but I understood how difficult it must be for her to look at me when my face looked the way it did.  “Your Majesty, please, I beg of you. Please have the Queen show us some mercy. I am the sole breadwinner of my family. If I die, then there will be no one to feed my brothers and sisters.” She continued pleading with me.  “I give you my word that no harm shall come to you. Now wipe those tears and let’s see what the Queen has to say about the next course of events,” I said, as soon as the sound of trumpets penetrated the walls of the castle, signaling the arrival of King Delray and his family.  “Oh no! They are here!” The maidservants cried out in unison before the door burst open and my Mother came charging in, a strange resignation shimmering in her eyes. My heart grew heavy with despair because I knew that whatever was going to happen now was not going to be good for anyone.  “Princess Orla is nowhere to be found,” my Mother announced as if we didn’t already know that.  “Your Majesty, whatever shall we do now? The Prince is here and he must be waiting for the Princess!” Seriously, why was everybody stating the obvious here? Was I the only one who could see the ridiculousness of this situation?  “Yes, he is definitely waiting for the Princess. And we shall give the Princess to him.” That’s when I noticed that my Mother’s eyes did not leave my face as she said all this.  “But how can we give the Princess to him when she is not here?!” One of the maids asked, I thought her face would explode with the amount of anxiety present on her face.  “She is here, of course.” My Mother looked at me as she said this and my heart sunk as I realized what she was planning. No, no, oh my stars, no!  “Mother—” she cut me off before I could refuse.  “Enough! You shall aid Princess Raina in getting ready. The wedding is about to take place in fifteen minutes and that is all the time that shall be allotted to you. If I don’t see Princess Raina walking down the aisle in fifteen minutes it’ll be your heads on the pike,” she said with authority that no one could rival. She then came over to stand in front of me before saying, “If you are thinking to follow in your sister’s footsteps then let me warn you right now; I have guards stationed at every corner of the castle and if you so much as think about running away, believe me they are not going to hesitate in humiliating you in front of the entire Kingdom. Not only will you bring the wraith of Oyehan upon you but of your own Kingdom as well. Now put on that dress and go marry that Prince.”  I couldn’t even say anything even if I wanted to. My own Mother was willing to throw me to the wolves just to save her own skin. I understood that her feelings for me had taken a shift since the incident but the fact that she was willing to humiliate me in front of everyone for the sake of this alliance gave me true insight about her feelings for me. My throat clogged up with pain that was threatening to spill out but I forced it down.  There was no way out for me.  I was doomed either way.  As soon as my Mother departed, the maidservants slowly and hesitatingly made their way over to me, as if they were afraid of me lashing out at them.  I sighed and turned around, coming face to face with the mirror—my worst enemy. “Bring the dress over. I shall be grateful if any one of you can help me with my hair and make up.” And with those words I sat down and allowed the ladies to help me get ready for the fate that would be my downfall.  ~*~*~*~* I wouldn’t have recognized the woman staring back at me if it wasn’t for the scar running through the left side of my face. This woman who never gave marriage a second thought after her face was ruined. The woman who no one would love because her face marred her entire being. The woman who was once the light of her Kingdom’s eyes was now Dossoba’s dirtiest secret.  The woman that was me.  “Your Majesty, you look absolutely beautiful.” I did not know the name of the servant who just complimented me, and I did not care. Her words were nothing but lies meant to comfort me in my hour of demise.  “Bring me the veil,” I commanded, knowing I could not go down without it. I knew Arkin would know who I was as soon as he would lift the veil to kiss me, but at least I would have this sheer piece of fabric to hide my face once he rejected me at the alter while the entire Kingdom laughed.  “Your Majesty, it’s time.” Came a voice behind me as soon as a veil was placed in my hands. I wasted no time in putting on the veil and walking out of Orla’s room, the white gossamer with gold motifs pooling around me. My Father was not here to walk me down the aisle because he did not want anybody to know that he was part of the deception. He, just like Mother, was more concerned about the image he portrayed to the world.  I could hear the music getting louder and louder the closer I got to the main hall where the wedding ceremony was to take place.  This was it, there was no turning back now.  In actuality, I could turn around and run like my sister had but I knew better than to call my Mother’s bluff. She was not one to make idle threats especially when it came to me. She wanted to get rid of me today and she would make sure she accomplished it. Getting rejected by Prince Arkin was obvious but the whole of Dossoba would shun me today and nothing would bring my Mother greater pleasure. Finally, the secret she had been too embarrassed to share with the world would be force to flee the Kingdom because no one would accept her and she could live out her days in peace while swimming in the sea of sympathies she would garner from the people. As for the Kingdom of Oyehan, they would pity my parents and continue to offer their support.  The grand doors opened and I was momentarily blinded with the amount of light that hit me square in the eyes. It was as if the sun was shining directly on me, making it impossible for me to walk in a straight line as people stood up to gaze at me, not knowing the fake who was walking down the aisle.  Though my feet wanted to run in the opposite direction, I forced myself to continue forward, keeping my eyes on the man who was going to reject me in the next few minutes. Where would I go after this? I would have to start my life elsewhere after today, and I didn’t have a clue how to go about it. Even though I tried my best to be humble and gentle with those who were not as privileged as I was, I couldn’t help but agree with my Mother when she told me how I take advantage of the comfort and luxuries offered to me. I did not know how to live like a commoner, I just hope it didn’t take too long for me to adjust.  My heart screamed when I spotted Prince Arkin standing at the end of the aisle waiting for Orla. I hated what I was about to do to him. I was not the only one who would be suffering from humiliation as Prince Arkin’s reputation would be tarnished as well, all because my Mother loved her wealth more than she loved me.  I did not dare look at him when I came to stand in front of him. I was too ashamed. This man, no matter what he thought of me did not deserve this. He deserved someone who was honest with him, who was marrying him because she truly loved him. You love him.  Yes, I did love him despite all that happened between us, but he did not know that nor did he care. To him my love was the worst thing in this world and he would rather die than be the recipient of that love. I knew that because he had said those exact words to me just before he cut all ties with me.  A shudder traveled the length of my body as soon as his hands took hold of mine and the priest began the ceremony. I had no idea what he was saying because I was too busy trying to ignore the feel of Arkin’s strong hands as they held mine as if he had no intention of ever leaving my side.  Don’t worry. Soon you’ll wrench your hands from mine and run away.  Through the sheer fabric of the veil I could make out the royal ensemble which he was wearing. The gold thread on his robes and the Oyehan Kingdom’s crest at the center of his chest spoke of his wealth and status. Any woman would be lucky to be his bride, I did not understand why my sister chose to run away.  If I could see him through the veil, could he tell that I was not Orla? Of course not, if he could then he wouldn’t be standing here so calmly while the priest went on and on. No, Prince Arkin didn’t know, and as long as he didn’t know, I was safe.  However, my relief was short lived as the time had come for us to speak our vows. I knew without a doubt that Arkin would recognize my voice and chaos would ensue but did I really have any other option?  You can change your voice, my inner voice suggested, but I knew it was no use. He knew my voice just as well as I knew the sound of his.  I gasped as he squeezed my hands before saying, “I, Arkin Matthew Delray, take thee, Orla June Dossoba, to be my lawfully wedded wife, to have to and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, or richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, ‘til death do us part.”  Bullshit! Bullshit! Bullshit!  He was lying through his teeth and he didn’t even realize it. His words would mean nothing after I opened my mouth and spoke my vows. Then I’d see just how much he would love and cherish me. The poor man didn’t even know he was pledging his life to the wrong woman.  Speak your vows and get this over with.  Shutting out all thoughts from my mind, I took a deep breath and began, “I, Orla June Dossoba, take thee, Arkin Matthew Delray, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have to and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, or richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, ‘til death do us part.”  This was it. Time for me to pack my bags and make a run for it. However, nothing happened. I waited for Arkin to react but he just stood there silently while the priest asked if anybody had any objections to this union after which he told Arkin to kiss me.  Okay, this is it. He is going to find out that I was not Orla and he would probably storm out of here with my pride and dignity on the floor.  My mouth dried up like the desert as soon as he lifted my veil, revealing to him the deception I had been trying so hard to hide.  When his eyes locked on mine I could see a million emotions flashing in those blue eyes; emotions that made me wish I was dead. Tears threatened to spill from my eyes as I waited for him to lash out and demand an explanation.  However, he surprised me when he stepped forward and leaned down to kiss me. To the outside world it would look like that Arkin was kissing me, but only I knew what exactly he was telling me.  I had been an i***t to think I could fool him. He had known all along who I was and what I was doing and his lips on mine told me exactly that.  Prince Arkin knew I was not Orla.  And he was going to make me pay for it.