A Lycan of Her Own

"The royal scroll has arrived!" Came the yell. I jolted up from my half asleep state, my forehead hitting the bedside lamp. I brought my hand to my forehead, feeling my wolf give a small growl. She is a pretty sensitive one, and I sometimes wonder why the moon goddess thought it was wise to give a sensitive girl an extra sensitive lycan wolf. I gave a small sigh, my eyes closing for a bit as I tried to drown out the noises downstairs. My bliss did not last long, however, as the door suddenly opened with a loud bang. "Leilyn! The Prince's scroll has arrived! It is finally here!" I opened my eyes. Reed was standing by the door, barely able to contain herself. Her angelic blonde hair bounced up and down as she jumped, her teeth flashing the light of my cozy room. I managed a small sigh and got out of bed. That hair was one thing I envied. My hair was pitch black. So black in fact that it didn't even seem blue like most people said it would. And it was just like my eyes. I didn't have the warm, brown attractive eyes, or the light blue eyes my sister had that she got straight from our mom. Instead, I had pitch black eyes, a darker variation of our father's. They were so black that Reed would often joke that she could use them as a mirror. "What do you mean?" I asked her, scratching the side of my neck. She jumped in, twirling a little. I could catch the whiff of strawberry in her hair as she did. "Have you forgotten so fast? The prince has come of age! And you know since his mate died, he will have to pick another. His scroll of invitation has come here! To this house! He will be having dinner with us!" My eyes immediately widened, all the senses that had been dulled by sleep suddenly waking to full alertness. I swallowed, feeling my heartbeat start to go a little wild, my chest hammering hard. I swallowed, hoping Reed would not notice. Prince Zidane Dacre would be having dinner with us? It felt like something straight out of a dream I had begged for, way too good to be true. I swallowed again, feeling my mouth go dry. Of course I new prince Zidane would be taking a wife. He lost his mate in an unfortunate accident four years ago. We, lycans were never given second chance mates. Love, for us, could not happen twice. But the royal family was an exception. In cases like these, they were given a woman. A woman who would be chosen by the lycan seer himself. It was almost like another mate bond, without the consequences. After all, the prince had the duty of an heir. He needed to have a family, and continue the royal blood of Whispers, the largest lycan dynasty in Europe. "But...why is he coming here?" Reed came in front of me, a big smile on her face. "He needs a wife. What do you think he will be comimg here for?" "But I thought..." "Yes. The seer said he should come here. In the scroll, he said that his destiny lies with one of us." I felt my heart jump into my throat as Reed's wide smile slowly vanished, a more serious look coming on her face. If it was really one of us, then... "But you know it can never be you, right?" I looked up, meeting her eyes. All of the humor was gone, her eyes wide with a dark seriousness. "I was..." She stepped closer, her hand coming to my hair. "Look at you, Leilyn. Your hair is black, your eyes...even your name means night. You wouldn't want to shroud the future king's life in darkness, would you?" I blinked rapidly, recognizing that tone. It was the sickly sweet tone she used when she needed me to do something, to sacrifice. Just like now. They had given both of us equal opportunities, but I knew, Reed would be given both. "Sure. You are...older too. And look at you. Why would he ever choose me?" She smiled again, patting my shoulder. "I am glad you get it. You have always been so intelligent." I nodded, forcing a smile. I didn't say a word, before suddenly, mum popped in, her eyes scanning both of us. "Do you have your dress, Reed?" Reed turned to her. "My sister will definitely be down to do it for me. After all, she has the most skilled hands." Mother turned to me with a grateful smile. "Such an angel. You should get Reed's dress ready. Don't bother about anything else and just focus. It has to be perfect." "Sure," I answered and she walked away briskly, no doubt to set to work. We were not dignitaries in the pack, so we were not entitled to any lycan servants. I always liked sewing, and so I took it up immediately after the lycan grooming school. And that was the first and last time I met Zidane. I swallowed hard, closing my eyes. He is going to belong to my elder sister now. I had no right to do this to myself. "I heard men are more attracted to women wearing red. I want the dress to be red. I would leave the big ball dresses for the wedding, and take a design that hugs my figure. It wouldn't be too hard, right?" I nodded. "I will get to work." "Thank you, sis." I stood there as she walked away, a small skip to her steps, her hair bouncing. I gave a small sigh, then turned away, trying as hard as I could to suppress my emotions.