The Princess Swap

4.

 I opened my eyes to catch mismatched ones staring at me. I felt cushioned in soft clouds. Something soft was beneath me and a sweet scent surrounded me. It felt like paradise. Except for the creepy eyes that belonged to the prettiest girl I had ever seen.

“What happened?” I asked, throat on fire. The pretty girl stood. She wore a purple dress with glitters.

“You fainted.”

My eyes bulged. I moved to sit upright in the bed that felt like clouds but a wave of dizziness hit me. Fainted? I had never fainted in my life. I worked long hours under the blazing sun and in the freezing winter. I had never fainted from any of those.

“I’m sure you are mistaken. I have never fainted in my life.” I told the girl, managing to sit up.

The girl looked at me and before she said it, before she even scoffed in derision, I knew it wasn’t true.

“I’ve known you for two years, Ariana. You’ve managed to faint more than ten times in these two years. Remember the incidence with Jordyn and the Prince?” No, I didn’t remember any incidence like that. I didn’t even know Jordyn. But whatever the incidence was, it made her cackle with glee.

It hadn’t been a dream.

I glanced around, noting the impeccable design of the room. The walls were painted a blinding white, bare, save for a clock shaped like a peacock. Beside the big bed stood a nightstand with a fancy night lamp and a picture of the princess and her prince.

The wardrobe, sheets, canopy, curtains and bedsheets were a disgusting pink.

A woman barged in. The same woman that had been mean and controlling while welcoming the prince. She had familiar features that I could not place. An oval-shaped face, pointed nose and thin lips.

“Excuse us, Raven.” And a stern voice.

Raven lost her sniggering look as she nodded, bowing herself out and leaving me with this woman. She stalked in, back rigid and eyes fixated on me like I had murdered her pack mate.

The insane urge to bury myself under the covers overwhelmed me. Before I could think, I hunched into myself like I used to do when my Alpha pulled out his belt to whip me.

“Back straight!” My spine straightened at the harsh command. “What has gotten into you, Ariana?” The woman said, standing at the foot of the bed.

I fought the urge to cower. I knew harsh treatments. I had lived when them ever since my mother dumped me at my father’s place ten years ago and never returned. First, I blamed myself, faulted myself for all the bad words my father said to me. I assumed I merited them. If only I could be a good girl, maybe he would love me. Maybe he would not speak of me in such a derogatory manner as he had. It took four years for me to realize I could never be a good girl. Not good enough for my father at least.

I learnt a long time ago not to cower from my problems. I could not hide from them. Run? I tried once. I tried to run but they caught up with me and the whipping had been worse. All I could do was paddle through my problems. They would come and all I could do was wait out the pain they brought.

But this woman, this woman with a stern glare, the scent of an Alpha and the mark of elegance, there was a look in her eyes that brought back memories that were best forgotten.

“I’m sorry, ma’am,” I ducked my head.

“Don’t get sarcastic with me now, Ariana! It’s Mother to you,” She snapped. My eyes flew up from my laps to her face.

Yes, the Princess’ mother. I saw the subtle resemblance now. They had the same face shape, a pretty oval. While it made the Princess look dainty and prettier, this woman managed to look stern with hers.

“Oh, M – Mother.” I didn’t want to cry but I felt tears well in my eyes. I had not called anyone Mother in ten years.

“Oh, Ariana,” The woman said in a soft voice. “Didn’t we agree you would stop this nasty behaviour of crying when I reprimand you for messing up?”

I swiped tears off my cheeks, embarrassed and shocked. I wasn’t a cry baby but no one ever reprimanded me when I got fed up of bottling things in and just had a good cry. But I wasn’t the Princess. I had to keep reminding myself of this. The earlier I learnt that, the better I would walk in these shoes.

“Yes, I am sorry, Mother.” I straightened my back. I had to learn. I could not tell how long this would take. For all I knew, this would be my life for eternity. The earlier I adjusted, the earlier I could enjoy a life devoid of misery.

Starting then, I made a vow to be Princess Selene and not just Selene.

“Good. I have rescheduled that walk you foolishly rejected with the Prince. Wilhelmina will be here soon to help you into more appropriate clothing for an evening walk.”

I looked out of the window to see stars lighting up the skies.

“It is night already,” I answered with a frown. Evening walks were for, well, evenings. It had to be at least nine o’clock.

“Correct. Your Prince is ‘rested’ now,” She said with air quotes. I almost smacked myself for my stupidity. It did not sound like something Princess Ariana would say if her mother was so against it.

“But –“

“No buts, Ariana!” The woman shouted. I jerked away, startled by the sound. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell.” Her weight barely registered on the bed as she took a seat beside me. “Don’t you want to marry the Prince, Ariana? Wouldn’t you like to be Queen?” She asked, clasping my hands in hers.

Did I want to marry the Prince? Of course not! Not only was he out of my league, but he also was not a kind man either. Yes, he had power. Yes, he was drop-dead gorgeous. And yes, it seemed it had gotten to his head. Prince Zion had every right to be arrogant. I did not care for arrogance.

But this wasn’t about me. This was about Princess Ariana. Her mother asked it as a rhetoric question. I knew this. Princess Ariana must love Prince Zion. Why else would she want to speed up their wedding like the King said?

“I want to, M – Mother.” Saying the words still made me emotional. Her eyes softened and she pulled me into a hug. I clung to her, fighting back a sniffle.

“I thought you were out of your emotional phase but I understand. The wedding is in two months. You must be feeling the jitters already.”

“I am nervous,” I admitted. Nervousness wracked my limbs but for a different reason than she thought. A different reason than she could even dream. It had been only a day, less than a day. And I already felt the need to run. An urge to confess like I had committed a grave sin.

They would blame me anyway. They may not believe it. But if they did, it would be my fault.

“Don’t be,” She smoothed down my hair. I closed my eyes from the feel of her hand patting down my hair, enjoying getting mothered by someone for the first time in ten years. “There is no need to be nervous. We already agreed I’ll shoulder all the responsibilities of the wedding. Who better to plan your wedding than someone who knows you best, eh? I know your taste.” She kissed my palm. “All you have to worry about is for the prince to not shift the wedding again. You must secure him once and for all.”

“Secure him?” I frowned. Did that mean the Prince didn’t love Ariana?

  It wasn’t uncommon for wealthy people to arrange marriages within themselves. The Prince and Ariana had been betrothed even before their births. Theirs was not like a traditional setup as the Prince loved his princess. It was the story that was passed around. The only mark to soften a man as hard as Zion. A Prince devoted to his Princess. We never heard that Zion had postponed their wedding and had to be ‘secured’ by the Princess.

“Don’t pretend you haven’t observed Jordyn encroaching on your territory. I never wanted to bring them but I understand you need familiar faces in this maze of a castle. But be careful of her. Don’t let her steal your Prince. Don’t let anyone steal your Prince.”

“Yes, Mother,” I answered. It was the right thing to say. It made her smile, a wide smile that took away the lingering harshness of her jaw. “Good girl. You will make a fine Queen, Ariana.” She kissed my forehead before leaving.

I sighed. This was the life.

As if she had been waiting outside the door, Wilhelmina entered the room once the Princess’ mother left.

“Alright?” She asked, pushing in. She threw open the Princess’ closet and started to rummage through it.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” I stood, wanting to explore the big room. A dresser sat opposite the bed, a big mirror shaped like a giant apple hung above the dresser.

I paused for a second to look at myself. I didn’t know what to expect. Perhaps, a part of my consciousness had hoped a mirror would be able to show the real me. But it was just a cosmetic addition to the room, not a magic mirror, so it had no way of seeing Selene rather than the Princess.

“We heard you fainted in the Prince’s arms,” Wilhelmina pulled out a simple dress, knee-length, out of the closet and turned to me with dreamy eyes. “It must have been magical.” She added in a wistful tone.

“It was something,” I answered truthfully.

My heart squeezed as I remembered. I could not tell the exact emotion I felt. A mixture of an array of emotions whispered through me. Predominantly, I registered the choked feeling I got in his presence, the blood rushing to my head causing me to be dizzy while my heart pounded faster, and the mortification of collapsing when he tried to kiss me, embarrassing him in presence of his family!

“What is must be like to be you,” She muttered. Oh, she had no idea! I could no longer decide if being me was a bad thing or a rare opportunity. Who else had ever experienced being Princess Ariana, the betrothed of Prince Zion?

She helped me out of my dress. The more time she spent unbuttoning and unlacing and unfastening, the harder and faster my heart beat. Until it was a pounding drum that drowned out all my thoughts.

What was it about Prince Zion that terrified me so much? Standing with the King and Queen did not make my heart beat so fast until he came in and it felt like just being in his presence would suffocate me.

The blue dress polled at my feet so I stepped out if it. I stepped out of the basket lifting the cloth. I stepped out of the cloth underneath the basket. I pressed my lips together, clenched my fists at my sides to save from protesting the vulnerability of being nude in a stranger’s presence. Whether it was my body or not, I could not shake off the self-consciousness.

I didn’t need to be completely nude, thankfully. She helped me into the new dress and I took a second to admire the Princess.

“Your prince awaits you at the entrance to the castle,” Wilhelmina whispered in awe before backing out of the room. I focused on the sound of trees and followed them to the entrance of the castle.

He was there, standing under the glow of the moon, a single red rose in his hands. For the hundredth time that day, my heart leapt to my throat.