It wasn't hard to adjust to this lifestyle. In fact I had the whole princess act down in the first few weeks of living in the palace. Just a couple months later I now know all there is to know about my great city, Amara.
Today my father will announce my marriage to Lord Carrington of Monitum. Refreshed from my nap, I yank the sheets off my bed in excitement for the night to come. I press the button on my wall and call for Mary. Within a few minutes she rushes into my room.
"You're awake thank goodness!" Mary says clapping her hands together. "This is a very big day for you. We better start getting you ready now!" Mary pulls me into the bathroom and starts running hot water for a bath. After scrubbing my skin raw and rinsing the lemon scented shampoo from my hair, I am left alone to dry myself off.
I open the door to my room and Mary stands in front of me holding the most beautiful dress I've ever seen. She slips the fabric over my head and zips me up. I slip into a pair of silver heels and get my makeup done.
She applies a small amount of silver eye shadow to my eyes and lines my eyelid with a black pencil. She applies a little blush to my cheekbones and lengthens my lashes with mascara.
Next she dries my hair and curls it, pulling it up into a complicated but elegant updo.
"Can I look yet?" I ask her eagerly.
"Go ahead." Mary twists me around so that I face the full length mirror. I am at a loss for words as I look at this new person in the mirror.
My hair is pulled up into a bun with some curls left to frame my face. Today I wear a silver crown atop my head. I look at my dress, spinning a few times for good measure and squeal. The emerald green dress has a very modest neckline with jewels decorating my shoulders. The simple bodice of my dress hugs my curves but flows out at my waist into an elegant skirt. The skirt is composed of layers of green fabric, with flowers dotting the dress. I hug Mary, careful not to step on her feet with my heels.
Mary tells me to wait outside the ballroom for my name to be announced and I walk downstairs, taking care to walk lightly with my head up. After waiting outside the ballroom for a few minutes, I hear my father say my name and I walk to the doors. I walk regally down the carpeted stairs as the people lucky enough to receive an invite to the ball, bow their heads as I enter.
After the excitement of my arrival dies down I walk over to my father. It is not hard to see him as his regal purple robes stand out in the ballroom. As I walk over I see that a man is talking to him but he stops mid sentence to look at me.
"You must be Rose" He says, a glint in his beautiful blue eyes. They're as deep as the ocean, and for a second I am completely immersed in them, forgetting to answer. I snap back to reality and stretch out my hand as he kisses it.
"That's me!" I say with a smile. "And you are Lord Carrington I presume?"
He nods in reply. "You are even more lovely than I thought you would be." He grabs my hand and pulls me onto the dance floor. I feel a blush creep onto my face at his compliment and my heart flutters in my chest.
I rest my head on his shoulder as we slow dance all night long. For a second I consider pulling away from him. I want to leave the ballroom and get to know the man that I am to be married to. I push away the thought. I must trust my father's decision. He wouldn't engage me to just anyone, I'm sure of that.
"Is everything alright dear?" Lord Carrington asks concerned. He must have felt me tense up.
I almost cringe when he calls me dear. After all he barely knows me. "Yes, I just thought I saw a spider." I say quickly, mentally slapping myself for my poor excuse.
"Okay." He looks at me curiously obviously not believing me. "Let me know if you see it again, I'll take care of it." He winks at me.
I smile and place my head on his shoulder again. I feel somebody's eyes on me as I do so and I wonder if it's just my father watching the two of us.
Towards the end of the night Lord Carrington pulls me into the hallway. I catch a glimpse of my father's face and he winks at me.
Now we are alone in the hallway. Lord Carrington looks me straight in the eyes. "I suppose you know what's coming next?" I nod quickly waiting in anticipation.
He gets down on a knee, "Rose will you do me the honor of being my wife?"
"Yes." I reply quickly, breathing a sigh of relief. As he stands, he leans in, kissing me passionately. I can't help but let my lips melt into his. I get an uneasy feeling as I feel a pair of eyes burning into me once again. I break away from Lord Carrington.
"We should tell my father of our engagement." I say hurriedly. I start walking into the ballroom hoping to get away from whoever was watching us.
After my father announces our engagement the room erupts in applause. Girls pull me towards their groups, demanding to show me my diamond ring. After I've moved around the entire room, I walk to my room to get a little time to myself, telling my father and Lord Grayson that I am going to freshen up.
As I sit on my balcony I am mesmerized by all the stars above me. I think about my mother, and I can't help but wonder if she's up there, among the stars. I will myself to remember anything about her. Maybe she has the same brown eyes as me, or my small nose, or maybe I have her to thank for my long legs.
A voice interrupts my thoughts. "I thought I might find you up here."
My head turns towards the unfamiliar voice. I lock eyes with a young man with dark brown hair and green eyes. I instinctively back up to the railing of my balcony, keeping as much distance between this man and me as possible.
"Hey now, I'm not going to hurt you. Just keep quiet." He says, his hands out in front of him showing he means no harm.
As if I could make any noise if I tried. My heart is in my throat, and although I'm screaming internally, no sound is coming out of me.
The man starts getting closer to me and I assess my options. Quickly I climb over the railing of my balcony, stepping out onto the ledge, ready to drop to the grass below me. However, the heel of my right shoe isn't on the balcony like I expected it to be and I stumble, slipping off the ledge. I feel myself falling back and close my eyes preparing to hit the ground. But I don't. I open one eye hesitantly to see the man holding my waist.
"Let go of me!" I scream, finally finding my voice.
He pulls me up to the railing so I'm standing straight now and he kisses me. I try to resist but his hand is on my back now pressing my body against his. He kisses me passionately, one hand remaining on my waist, the other cupping my cheek. I look in his eyes, and see them sparkling with mischief.
He finally breaks the kiss and I struggle to speak. My knees feel weak and he pulls me over the railing. A ladder drops down to the balcony and the man grabs me by the waist again, climbing onto the ladder. The ladder moves up slowly, into a ship floating above the castle. I am finally let go onto the floor of the metal ship and I see the man in the dim light.
He is grinning at me, looking quite pleased with himself. He better wipe that grin off his face soon. When he doesn't I take care of it myself. I pull my hand back, whipping it towards his face. With the satisfying crack of skin on skin contact, the smile disappears from his face. He scowls at me while rubbing his cheek, already reddening.
"What did I do to deserve that?" He asks innocently as if he really has no idea.
"What made you think you could kiss me?" I demand, my anger showing undoubtedly in my bright red cheeks.
"I had to keep you quiet somehow." He winks.
I feel my anger boiling inside me again but soon realize my mistake. While I have been so worried about this man kissing me I have totally ignored the fact that I was just kidnapped by a strange man. A million questions cloud my mind, and in the middle of it all I find myself leaping towards the man, knocking him onto the metal floor.
I pull my hand back again, clenching it into a fist this time, but before I can make contact with nose I am grabbed roughly by the shoulders and pulled back. The figure above me grabs my arm, stabbing me with a needle. I try to make out the face above me but my vision begins to blur as I am lowered down onto the cold, hard ground.
Okay so I've been dying to write this chapter. Finally we're getting some action!! This is only the first twist of many so be prepared ;-))
xoxo
b0wlofcherries