The Lycan King's Human Queen

Wallflowers and Wine

~Claire~

Claire watched with an amused smile as her friend, whose idea of formal was an old baggy shirt and jeans, fussed over her appearance at the dressing table.

Today, King Octavius would be arriving and everyone was overcome with excitement and panic.

The King was a busy man who had to return to the capital as soon as possible so he could not spend a lot of time in their town which meant all eligible women had to be presented to him immediately after he arrived, in the town hall.

"I am flat," commented Candy with a heartbroken look as her hands squeezed her chest through her dress.

"Your dress makes it appear appealing," the blonde assured then yawned loudly.

Claire was part of the committee tasked with decorating the town hall and they had spent many days and nights trying to make it perfect for the Mayor's wife, who was never satisfied with their work.

She had hoped to help with the cooking too but the decorating had drained her of all her energy, so here she was.

"Do you think my hair looks better in a bun or parted in the middle?" Candy asked, assessing her features in the mirror.

"Parted in the middle, it draws attention to your eyes and makes you look cute," she walked up to the other woman and made her seat so she could style her hair.

"This is a bit silly, isn't it?" Candy asked, her dark purple eyes staring at her through the mirror's reflection.

"What is?" She asked as she struggled to get her friend's wild hair under control and tame it with the brush.

"I'm almost a hundred so there's no way it's me but I'm still excited by the possibility of being his mate." She laughed, humourlessly.

Claire frowned. "He didn't specify an age. You have just as much of a chance as any other girl..."

Candy shook her head with a small smile. "He is a lycan, Claire. He wouldn't have waited this long if it really was me. My guess is, it's a girl around your age or maybe even younger."

She saw the apologetic look on the blonde's face and smiled reassuringly, "it doesn't matter to me. As long as I get to take in scent, be in the same room as him or even grab a handful of his..."

"I get it!" Claire Interrupted, seeing the lecherous grin growing on the she-wolf's face.

"You are such a virgin," taunted Candy and Claire moved away with a huff.

"I'm done with your hair, ingrate," she plopped down on the bouncy bed with a pout.

"This is so nerve-racking. Why don't you come with me? We can be nervous wallflowers together." Candy turned around and pleaded with a pout.

Claire bit her lower lip and looked away from the enthusiastic woman and Candy's eyes narrowed at the action.

"That snivelling coward," she spat with a sneer and Claire sighed tiredly.

"Did he say you're not allowed to go?"

She nodded with a pout.

"You're going," declared Candy, stubbornly as she walked to her closet and began rifling through it, "not just because I want you to come or you want to come but to tell that controlling i***t that he does not own you or dictate your life!"

"But none of your clothes fit me," she pointed out and the woman stepped away from the closet with a contemplative look.

"Then I'll run over to your house and get your things," she concluded and began stripping herself of jewellery and anything that would restrict her movements.

"You don't need to do this, Candy. I'm fine with staying," Claire said with a pleading look on her face as she walked over to the woman. "You're already dressed and you look so beautiful, don't ruin all the hard work it took to make you this pretty for you darling King."

Candy blushed and rolled her eyes, "If I'm going to get heartbroken when some lucky lass finds out she is his mate, it might as well be with my best friend beside me, making snide comments about said lucky lass even though we don't mean it." She dropped the accessories on the dressing table and walked over to the window.

"I'll be back soon so strip and maybe take a shower," came the instruction and the brunette jumped out the window, to the annoyance of Claire.

"You could have used the door!" She called out with a disapproving tone and sat on the bed with a huff.

Claire stared at her reflection with muted awe as Candy looked on proudly, behind her.

"I have outdone myself," complimented Candy proudly and Claire nodded in agreement.

Candy had dusted her face with a light layer of makeup that enhanced her natural features and made her skin glow in the light that lined the older woman's mirror.

Her dress was a simple, long-sleeved, blue lace gown with an open back that went down to her waist, and a waterfall of glittering fabric that poured down to her ankles.

Nathan had cursed up a storm when she first saw the dress and refused her getting it but Claire had loved it too much to walk away so she had bought it without him knowing and stuffed it in the back of their closet.

Claire had never thought she would get the chance to wear it and now that she was while doing something he had warned against, she felt a rush of excitement go through her and was glad Candy had persuaded her to go.

"You ready?" Asked Candy with a knowing smile and Claire nodded with an excited grin as she got out of the seat.

"We can't keep prince charming waiting at the ball, can we?" She asked with a cheeky smile and the two ladies went on their way, giggling and smiling uncontrollably, the whole way there.

Claire may have been there for the planning and decorating of the hall but she was shocked at how beautiful it turned out.

Small round tables were scattered around the large hall with beautiful ladies occupying them and waiting eagerly for their esteemed guest.

The warm pink and white lights made their faces glow and lit up the flowers (carefully selected by the Mayor's wife) that were hung up high, in strategic areas and styled into large bouquets that spilled into rivers of vines and flowers, making the room look like something out of a fairytale.

She hoped the king liked it as much as she did because of the time and effort that went into making it look perfect.

They took their seats at a table occupied by five other women, each dressed to impressed with ramrod straight postures and their chins in the air like they were on display at a pageant and even the slightest mistake would cost them their lives.

Claire's greetings went ignored and Candy did not bother when she saw the disgusted look some of the girls gave her.

A brown-haired girl, who was a werewolf by the way her nose was constantly twitching, turned to Candy with a glare.

"Aren't you too old to be alive?" She asked, snidely with a smirk and Claire's eyes widened at the thoughtless remark.

Candy was not self-conscious about her age and was proud of how far she had come and everything she had accomplished in her 'old' age.

She could not understand why the other girl would want to hurt her feelings by pointing out her age, when everyone knew that a werewolf could live to a thousand years and Candy was considered young to her people, at ninety-seven.

"Aren't you too stupid to exist," Candy asked as she waved at one of the servers, standing in the corner.

The girl sputtered, outraged, and Claire openly smiled at her.

"You called, miss," the young man said with an eager expression, excited to get some work done after standing in the corner the whole night.

A lot of pastries, drinks and wines had been prepared for the evening but for some strange reason, most of the girls had refused to digest any food or indulge in the alcohol, leaving the attendants idle and bored.

"You shouldn't eat or drink anything!" Warned a small woman with wide eyes and a panicked look, "you never know who is watching," she whispered conspiratorially while looking around.

"Yeah," agreed another, "if someone sees food on our table they'll think the rest of us joined you two. You can't eat," she stated firmly and Claire looked at the others to see what they thought.

They all agreed so she turned back to Candy with a devious smile that was returned with an equally sinister one.

"Bring everything and anything you can," Claire instructed him and he nodded in with an excited smile at their stubborn defiance.

"Oh. And lots of alcohol for a werewolf and human," Candy informed the man who was human and could not sense her.

"Of course," he gave a muted bow and walked away to fulfil their orders, both girls smiled cheekily at each other.

"You're going to ruin everything!" Screeched one of the girls as she got up and stomped away, forgetting the 'sophisticated air' she had been masking herself with.

The others followed after their compatriot, some of them glaring at the pair as they stood and walked away, leaving the two joyful women alone.

Claire giggled into her palm when Candy ended her joke, her face flushed with excitement and alcohol.

It was late into the night and the King had not yet arrived which forced the other girls who were above baser urges such as hunger and thirst, to eat and drink something.

Not surprisingly, the presence of something warm in their bellies made them more lively and friendly to each other so the hall was vibrating with the buzz of conversation and the occasional laugh.

'Too stupid to exist' or Stephanie, had returned to their table with sheepish looks and another girl in tow, and the conversation had taken off after apologies were made.

"You have to try this," declared Candy as she passed a plate over to the quiet ravenette woman who received it with a curious look.

"I shouldn't," she said while biting her lips and eyeing the round pastry, hungrily, "I'm already stuffed and I plan to drink more of the wine..."

"And I'm a f*cking Chef," slurred the purple-eyed woman while clutching a bottle of wine, "my word is law..."

"No. No, it is not," protested Claire, who was equally drunk but had retained enough of her wits, "eat what you can, honey," she whispered to the younger woman who seemed out of place among them, while squinting at her, "Candy is too high to..."

"You're drunk too," Stephanie pointed out and broke into giggles.

"We are all f*cking drunk!" Screamed Candy and everyone burst into laughter, the women seated at the surrounding tables included.

Claire glanced at the quiet and shy ravenette who was nibbling on her pastry and taking everything in with a small smile and racked her alcohol-addled brain for her name.

Gloria, a voice reminded and she opened her mouth to call out her name but was Interrupted by a loud and sudden sound.

A collective squeak sounded at the loud trumpet then the hall fell silent. Someone in the crowd snorted and everyone burst into uncontrollable laughter at the silliness of their reaction.

A woman dressed in the server's uniform, rushed up to the stage with an excited grin, "we have received word that the King's convoy is nineteen minutes away from us, so get ready everyone!"

There was a sudden hush in the hall then chaos as each girl whipped out a mirror or brush to try and make herself look presentable after getting carried away by the thrill of the night.

The girls at Claire's table joined in the chaos, ending the conversation and Claire glanced out one of the high windows to stare at the bright moon.

Her heart picked up as she thought of how close she would be to the king himself and she took small sips of her wine to calm herself before his arrival.