The Stolen Wolf Princess

PART 1  Standing in front of the mirror, I looked at the white fabric adorning my body. Little crystal beads covered the dress from the waist down. The sleeves were made out of a sheer white fabric that went all the way down to my hands, fanning down at the wrists to create a long draping effect. My brown hair was twisted and pulled into an updo with two little strands at my forehead left out, framing my face in the process. Blue makeup covered my eyelids, emphasizing my silver eyes and honoring the man I was betrothed to. Tyther Whytherton, prince of the Ice Moon Pack, the most handsome werewolf in the northern territory, was to be my husband in just a few hours. It was to seal the bond between the Ice Moon Pack and my pack, the White Moon Pack. I didn’t have a choice in the matter. I was the princess of the White Moon Pack, after all. It was my duty to marry a strong alpha and have babies to continue the strong bloodline. We would make a beautiful couple, my mother said to me almost every night. My dark hair, my fair skin, my silver eyes, mixed with his jet black hair and deep blue eyes would make us the couple of the season, if not the century. Generations would go on talking about the beauty of the bride and groom and the strength we would bring to the werewolves in the northern territory. Only I didn’t care. I didn’t want to marry this man. “Kaiyana, darling! Are you almost ready?” My mother strutted into the room, making herself known to all around us. “Yes, mother.” I pulled away from the mirror, no longer wanting to look at the woman in the dress. There was no escaping my future. Princesses didn’t get their own future after all. Their lives were intertwined with the lives of their people, and their destinies were to serve others. Our hopes, our dreams were lost in the line of the duties we held. My mother clicked her tongue when she looked at me. “That handmaiden of yours should be fired. To make you look like that on your wedding day of all days!” I rolled my eyes. There was nothing wrong with the way I looked. My mother just hated Dalla, my handmaiden. Dalla was too outspoken and weird, according to my mother. To me, Dalla was my best friend. She was beautiful and funny and the most supportive person in my life. Princesses weren’t allowed to play with the common children. We had to stay inside and study books and languages and take music lessons and fill our time with every conceivable activity a princess ought to know how to do. “My hair is fine,” I said, exasperated as my mother tweaked every little strand and curl. “You shouldn’t have any hair in your face. It’s not proper.” She tried to grab the pieces of hair from my forehead to tuck them into the rest of my head. I pulled back, tripping on the train of my dress and falling into a pile of pillows. I burst out laughing, imagining the whole scene. A beautiful princess falling in her wedding dress, causing feathers from the pillows to billow out into the air above. My mother rolled her eyes. “Now look what you’ve done. You have feathers all over you.” I struggled to get up, the dress constricting my movement too much. My mother offered her hand, pulling me up as best she could. “Relax, mother. We still have several hours before the ceremony. We have time to fix this,” I said once I was stable on my feet again. “And I like the hair hanging down in my face. It makes me feel just a little bit more like myself today.” My mother sighed, taking my hands. “I’m sorry. I know I’m all over the place today, but it’s not every day your only daughter gets married to a prince. Tyther is an absolutely stunning mate, too. You two will have such gorgeous children.” I instantly started coughing, shocked by her statement. This was the first time she had brought up the subject. I was only eighteen. I didn’t want children, at least not anytime soon. I still felt like too much of a child myself. When I finally regained my breath, I said, “Mother, please. Can we not talk about that? It’ll be awhile before that happens.” My mother pulled her lips tight and took my hand. She led me over to the couch. “Please sit. There’s a conversation I’ve been putting off, because I didn’t want to think about the fact that you are a woman now.” I sat as instructed, but there was a knot in my throat. I had a feeling this was not a conversation I wanted to have. “What is it, mother?” “On your wedding night, a man has certain… expectations from his wife.” I cut my mother off quickly. “Please don’t give me the s*x talk. I already know all about that.” My mother ignored my protests and continued, “And as a prince and princess, you’ll be expected to produce an heir as soon as possible. It’s possible that the activity that occurs when you are alone in your bedroom will result in that act.” My throat went dry at the thought. I knew I was giving up a life in order to fulfill the responsibilities I held as a princess, but to have children so soon was not an expectation I held. I didn’t want to be a mother, not at this age. “What if he’s not my mate?” I asked. “How can I go through with the act if he’s not even my mate?” My mother let go of my hand and began fixing her hair. “We’ve been through this, darling. Whether or not the prince is your mate doesn’t change the responsibility of having to have an heir. In fact, chances are, he won’t be your mate, so get rid of those ignorant dreams of yours right now.” I grew silent, not having a response. This was an argument my mother and I had. She called me a hopeless romantic and ridiculous for wanting to marry my mate. I knew my duties and responsibilities, but it didn’t change the fact that I had my own hopes and dreams. “Don’t make that face,” she said. “You have more privileges than most werewolves, especially at your age. I’m sure Prince Tyther will treat you the way a princess should be treated.” “Yes, mother,” I said, as if I was a drone. It was the only thing I could say to her. Nothing else would reach her ears. “Now, I have a final gift for you for tonight.” My mother pulled out a small box. She opened it up, revealing a white moon crystal on a silver-chain necklace. “This is the pendant of the white moon. It has been in our family for several generations. The women wear it as a protection and ward for happiness.” I placed my hand over my mother's. “That’s absolutely gorgeous. This was Gran’s, wasn’t it?” I had seen my grandmother wearing this necklace when she was still alive. I had wanted to wear it while playing dress up, but she never let me, saying it was something she could never take off. My mother motioned for me to turn around, so she could place the necklace around my neck. “Yes, it was hers. She wanted me to pass it onto you when you came of age. It is extremely precious, so don’t ever lose it.” I rubbed the moor crystal between my thumb and pointer finger, feeling the smoothness of the rock. “I won’t take it off. Ever.” I felt like this was a way to be connected to my grandmother, and my heart fluttered with happiness. “Now, we should get you cleaned up and ready for the ceremony. We can’t risk you being late,” she said, breaking the intimate moment. “Dalla! Get in here!” I heard footsteps clashing down the hallway. “Coming!” Dalla burst through the door to my room. Her eyes were wide, and she was out of breath. Her short dark hair was all over the place, and her cheeks were flushed. She was wearing a bright pink dress, which didn’t match the tan color of her skin. “Compose yourself, Dalla. This is no way to behave on Kaiyana’s wedding day,” my mother scolded. She moved towards the door. “Help Kaiyana clean up.” “Yes ma’am.” Dalla’s voice was filled with sarcasm, making me smile. “Watch your tone before I fire you,” my mother said. “As you wish.” Dalla curtsied, smirking at my mother. I had to cover my mouth with my hand to hold back my laughter. Dalla knew my mother wouldn’t fire her if I had anything to say about it. She had tried several times, but I refused. I knew Dalla’s “attitude” wasn’t proper, but I loved that she didn’t cower just because of my mother giving her the death. My mother scoffed and left the room. She clearly wasn’t in the mood to deal with the handmaiden today. Dalla skipped over to me. She was significantly shorter than me, and she reminded me of a pixie. Devious yet magical at the same time. She looked me up and down and lifted her eyebrows at me. “How did you manage that? Do you know how much work I put into your looks?” she scolded. She immediately started cleaning me up. I looked at her sheepishly. “Sorry. I tripped into a bunch of pillows.” Dalla shook her head. “How are you so clumsy? You better hope that prince of yours is good at catching you.” I looked to the ground. “Yeah.” Dalla paused, looking at me closely. “It’ll be okay. I know it’s not the happily ever after you hoped for, but you’ll find a way to be happy. And I’ll be by your side the entire time.” I let out a sigh. That did make me feel better. I just wished I had met Prince Tyther before our wedding. If I had a sense of who he was other than a strong, attractive prince, it would help calm my nerves. “My mother says I’m expected to have babies right away.” Dalla gagged at the thought. “Gross. You’re much too young to have kids.” “I know.” I started picking off some of the feathers to help the process along. “I wished there was a way out of today.” Dalla stopped. Her dark eyes twinkled as an idea grew in her brain. “Let’s leave. We could run away, and then you wouldn’t be forced into a marriage.” I toyed with the idea for a moment. I could run away to somewhere where nobody knew I was a princess. I could run freely and find love. I could choose to do whatever I wanted to with my life. I could be free. I shook my head, pulling myself out of the fantasy. I can’t. It’s the duty of a princess to do what’s best for her people.” “What about what’s best for you?” Dalla asked. She looked sad as she stared at me. I tried to hold the frown back as I looked at her. “What’s best for my people is best for me. We should finish getting ready for the ceremony tonight.” I looked away, trying to hide my real feelings. I wanted to do what Dalla suggested, but I couldn’t just abandon the life I had trained for my entire life. Dalla grabbed my hand and smiled at me. “I’m sure he’ll be a nice man, Kai. And who knows. Maybe he’ll be your mate, and you’ll get everything you’ve ever wanted and be a princess at the same time.” I smiled back, entertaining that thought. One way or another, it wouldn’t be long until I found out. When the white moon rose, I would be walking down the aisle, meeting my future husband.