Disguised Princess

Chapter 4

[Sebastian PoV]

After the run in with that awful sushi, Balthazar, I grabbed Allen and pulled him inside the mansion. I couldn't have him snarling at anyone looking at the princess anymore, not when we were still finding a way to keep her in our pack. Why was he snarling, anyway? The way he was acting, you'd think he stuck his claim to her.

As we rounded the corner into one of the secret stairways, I shoved him against the wall and growled. "What is your problem? I'm this close to my father dying and the elders allowing me to take over as alpha, and you go wolfie on our visitors!"

I pushed away from him and stalked up the stairs. This was something I would need to speak with my father about. Allen followed behind me as we arrived at his door and I gently knocked. A weak voice yelled for us to enter.

Inside my father lay in his bed, pale as could be and covered in blankets. The sickness he sustained while hunting was taking its toll. Normally we would hold a tournament for the next alpha, but given the circumstances he wanted me to be next.

No one knew I was the son of Alpha Kurt Blackdale. When he was younger, he was seduced by a siren who lived in the waters by our mansion. It only happened once, but it was enough to create me. Alpha had her thrown into our basement dungeons with only enough care to ensure a healthy pregnancy.

After I was born, she was executed and I was placed in my own room. Then it was stated that I was found in the woods and would grow up to become a guard. We've been fighting with the elders to allow me to be the next alpha ever since due the seduction breaking the bond between my father and his mate before they could have their own heir.

While growing up I was taught every skill in fighting imaginable and also joined in helping my father with is inventions. Those are what kept our pack thriving for all these years. It just hurt to be treated as his son behind closed doors rather than in public.

"Sebastian..." Alpha said in barely a whisper. "Has she arrived?"

"Yes. She's also brought a friend. They're both beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that it seems Allen wants the princess to himself. He almost got into it with the sushi brigade."

Allen paled and took a step back which made my father laugh. "I'm glad she's pretty. When I heard of her powers, I thought she would be a great match to you. A pack guided by two hybrids would be unheard of and could gain us many allies." He began to roughly couch and wheeze. "I'm sorry I may not make it to see your bonding ceremony. I pray to Selene it causes her little harm."

To mark a wolf who wasn't your mate was said to be extremely painful. It was insane that some chose mates and willingly went through it. When marking your true mate, it was supposed to feel like magic. Why would someone choose differently?

King Mitus had no idea that when we asked for his daughter to be with us that she would be betrothed to me instead of my father. The problem was, I was supposed to be the alpha before she got here. For some reason, the elders were taking their sweet time in giving me the title. I could only hope they didn't force a tournament.

Allen stared at me for a moment then cleared his throat. "Alpha, what if the princess is mated to someone else? Wouldn't that make things a little, well, awkward?" There he went, again, trying to stake his claim. Maybe a tournament wouldn't be so bad. The princess would do better under his care than under mine. He was already so protective of her.

"We won't know if their mates are even in this pack until they shift. Give it a few more days before you steal her away. Both of you could find your mates at the ball."

"She won't know her mate until she's 18! So even if he's there, neither of them would know!" Allen practically yelled at me which made a deep growl come from my father's bed. Almost instantly Allen was bowing his head and exposing his neck, he still couldn't resist alpha orders. Luckily for me, as his son, I could easily resist. The only orders my father and I couldn't resist were from King Mitus, which made me wonder if his daughter was the same way.

"Father, what if the elders insist on a tournament? The winner would be the one that Princess Isabella would marry." Allen growled again, enlisting another louder growl from Alpha. "It's true, Allen. I'm a bastard with only half alpha blood. I highly doubt the elders would allow me to use the other half of me. You? You're a quick shifter. The fastest I've known. You could win." That seemed to shut him up and he stood against the wall with a smug smile.

We spent the next few hours strategizing on what we would do if a tournament would happen. Ideally, if there were to be one, it had to happen before Alpha died. In order to become the new alpha, the prior one had to transfer his powers through his blood drank with wine in a sacred goblet. It was the 21st century, why did we still need goblets?

There were only 4 more days before the princess's birthday, where she would become Luna to whoever our new alpha was. Before midnight we would gather in the ballroom for her to make her first shift when the clock made its final dong. After, she would be dressed in a red gown to be marked by the alpha in a coronation and take her place. A genuine wedding could happen later, if she wanted, but what truly mattered were the bonding ceremony coronation.

Finally we bid our goodbyes to Alpha and left to our own rooms to get ready for the dinner. We made sure our cooks knew to prepare the richest meats fit for royalty and to bring out the finest dishware. It seemed a little too flashy for my taste, but we needed to impress the princess in hopes she would want to stay. I made a mental kick to myself when I realised I'd told her casual even though everything would be silver and gold. Maybe I'd send a servant to her room to let her know to dress a little less casual.

I ruffled through my closet until I found a pair of tan pants and matching vest. It seemed the friend, Kennedy I think her name was, was fond of the color. In the off chance I didn't end up alpha, I could pursue a real marriage with her. Her green eyes reminded me of the forest and her freckles were like star constellations. I'd take the next few days to woo her, starting with sitting next to her tonight. I could only hope she could forgive me for my rudeness in calling her the help.

Luckily we had tomorrow to get to one another. I'd hoped she'd get a chance to wander the packhouse to get to know her new home better, but something told me the ball of fire would prefer fun and screams. The weather was supposed to be nice, and there were a mix of amusement parks throughout the state I could take her to. I pulled out my phone and started checking hours and tickets of everything around. We'd make it a group outing; Her, the princess, Allen, and myself. Best friends with best friends, distracting ourselves from the stresses coming.

As my phone dinged with my account being charged I smiled. Tomorrow would be great, it had to be if I had any hope of making Kennedy mine. If they didn't bring the right clothes, we'd just stop by a mall on the way for them to change.

Then it hit me. What about dinner? Surely park food would be good for lunch and as a snack, but I needed to make a reservation somewhere she could enjoy. Of course I was seen as a great inventor and could easily get into anywhere in the area, but I didn't want to flaunt it in front of her. I wanted to show her that I could be patient. As an omega, she probably had to wait a lot.

But what about the princess? Maybe being her friend helped her with never waiting. Unfortunately, in the human world she would only be seen as a tourist. We would have to tread lightly. I put my name in the reservations and left a note to treat me like a normal person. Hopefully this plan would work in the long-run.