Betrothed To The Cursed Prince?

"Mom? Dad?" Tears welled up in Lela's eyes as she ran towards her parents, exerting her body weight on them as she engulfed them in a tight hug. She had missed them so much. It had been two years since she saw her parents, two years since that accident that took her family from her and rendered her useless.

Lela recalled the fight she had with her sick sister that morning, and how her parents and older sister chipped in to protect the younger one all because she was sick and Lela wasn't. Everyone was against her and telling her what she did was wrong, so normally, she ran out of the house to cool down before returning. That was the last time she had seen her family together before that horrible accident took their lives on their way back from the hospital.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for that day," Lela cried, ignoring the king and queen of the kingdom she was to marry into, the fine tall men who stood behind them, the men who stood behind her parents, the guards she had walked into the room with, and Kimi. She didn't care about anything or anyone but her parents in her arms.

They weren't the best parents, they had their favorites, and somehow, they were never on her side, but she'd loved them regardless. Lela had cried relentlessly because of something they'd say or do, she'd lock herself up and starve anytime she'd felt wronged, hoping her parents would one day treat her the way they did her sisters, they didn't; but she'd loved them anyway.

"I never should've left the house, I should've apologized there and then. I never should've left you guys, and Lia and Dinah. I should've gone with you and never returned together," Lela's eyes burned as she let little droplets of tears fall freely from her eyes.

"You have no idea how hard it was. I was so lonely, I didn't have friends or boyfriends, I didn't do what girls my age were doing. I had to fight to survive. I couldn't even smile, I just missed you guys so much," Lela cried, her words muffled so only her parents could hear her.

"Solela, are you okay?" King Merah patted his daughter's back. She was spewing strange things again. She had brought her strange characters to Oswind, he thought.

"Huh?" Solela? Her father had called her Solela? Lela froze. She still had her arms around her parents- her parents' lookalikes. She shut her eyes.

What had she done?

Dread flowed through her body like blood. She had let out all her pent-up frustration on these poor people all because they had her parents' faces. They didn't know she was Lela, they had no idea that Solela had died and she'd taken over. How was she going to fix this now? What would she say to cover her slip-up?

It was then it dawned on Lela that her parents' lookalikes weren't the only ones in the room, there were about six other people in the room, and they all had their eyes on her. Lela peeled herself from the king and queen's body, cleared her throat, and plastered a small smile on her face. She didn't miss the disapproving scowl the Queen had on her face.

Kimi was sure she was going to die, she was so sure all the royals in the room noticed the princess's strange behavior, she was so sure they would call in the physician and get the princess checked, then they would notice she had lost her memories, and then King Merah would have her head. Kimi shut her eyes, resisting the urge to touch her neck.

What had the princess been thinking, running to her parents like that? What had she been thinking, saying those words, talking so fast? Kimi sighed. The princess had nodded her head, saying she understood how very important this meeting was, and how she needed to act accordingly as a princess would, but it had all been lies to get Kimi to shut up. Kimi sighed again.

"I apologize, father, mother. I was very excited to see you both that I couldn't contain my excitement," Lela bowed just like Kimi had taught her. She couldn't look Kimi in the eyes, she knew the younger girl would be disappointed and embarrassed that she couldn't handle this one meeting, but it wasn't her fault.

King Merah smiled, nodding his head at Lela's confession. Yes, that was like his girl.

Lela let her eyes roam about the room, noticing the people in the room and what she had read about them. It was hard to tell who was who when there were no pictures, just physical descriptions of who they were. Lela beamed, hoping she wouldn't mess this up more than she already has. She looked at the only two people who she could identify without much help since they had crowns on, the King and Queen of Oswind.

"I am sorry your majesty for my behavior. I missed my parents dearly and couldn't contain my feelings," Lela placed her right hand over her heart, crossed her legs, and bowed. The King looked familiar, Lela noticed. She didn't remember where she had seen him, but she knew she had seen that face before. The King had broad shoulders were her fathers were narrow, He had sharp facial features; thick black hair that matched his thick brows, and greybeards, sharp narrow eyes, which from a distance looked grey, but when she stalked closer to receive blessings from him, she'd notice they were blue like the sky.

The Queen had fox-like features, and Lela thought it was because she was getting a weird feeling from the sly smile she had on when she approached her for blessings that she associated her with a Fox. It didn't stop the Queen from looking majestic and beautiful though.

Only when Lela's eyes shifted to the beautiful man standing behind the Queen did she understand what Kimi had written under FIRST PRINCE TEAGAN, heir to the dragon throne of Oswind.

First Prince Teagan, heir to the dragon throne of Oswind: Perfect. Lela recalled. The Prince truly looked perfect; he had his mother's face and his father's build. Teagan smiled when he caught Lela's eyes, but she turned away immediately out of shock. She blinked a few times and looked at him again, this time letting her eyes roam about his body, and imagine what the covered parts looked like.

"Glad to see you healthy," The Prince gave a curt nod that Lela was too out of it to respond to. Lela remembered at that moment Kimi saying she was betrothed to the Second Prince, but she wished she had been betrothed to the first prince instead. Looking at how magnificent the first prince was, Lela couldn't agree more.

The next man standing beside the first prince looked young, younger than she was. He looked like he was around Kimi's age or maybe older than her by a year or two, but he was young. Lela doubted he was the second prince. In the book Kimi had given Lela to read about the royal family and officials she was acquainted with, Lela recalled the portion she had read about the second prince; He walked around in a long black cloak that covered his head, a long sword hooked by his waist, he towered over the first prince and he barely talked.

The boy standing beside the first prince wasn't even as tall as the first prince, so he must be the fourth prince, Rhydian. Lela smiled at him, mentally patting her back for remembering such details.

Lela walked back to her parents, and behind them were two boys, both of them looked older than she was, and they had royal emblems on the harnesses across their chests, they had hair just like hers, and face-shape just like hers. Lela gasped, her hands slapped over her lips at the realization of who they were.

Instead of sisters like she had in her life, the princess had brothers and they were older than she was. Lela smiled and hugged them one after the other, calling them Lia and Dinah, in her head. Lela had a full family, she was going to marry into a rich family where everyone looked like they just walked out of a magazine. How much more perfect could her life as Solela be?

One person was missing though; the second prince, the man she was to marry, the man she was eager to see. He was not in the room, and from the looks of everyone around her, he was supposed to be here.

Lela shifted her weight to one leg as the big double doors pulled open, revealing a guard with his right hand on the hilt of his sword, his face was hard, and lines of aging marred his skin, telling a story of all the horrors he had seen and been through.

He cleared his throat, snapping Lela back to reality, then made his announcement.

"Prince Fayan The Cursed," was all the man said and the atmosphere in the room changed. The King and the Queen leaned into each other, talking in hushed voices, the first prince and the fourth prince, forming a meeting of their own.

Lela found Kimi's eyes, laying all she was feeling; the nervousness, the excitement, and the fear at finally seeing the man she was going to marry, in that one look. Kimi understood and pressed her lips together then walked slowly toward the princess, offering the comfort that the princess needed.

What Lela wasn't prepared for though, was the red-haired man, the murderer, the man that she had kissed and had kissed her back, to storm into the royal meeting room, with a black cloak that covered his head, just as she had seen him earlier from her balcony, with a smug smile on his lips. Lela's eyes widened, her body frozen in place as her heart throbbed loudly and uncontrollably against her rib cage, threatening to deafen her.

"This is your betrothed, the second prince, Fayan the cursed," Kimi's little whisper shattered whatever hope Lela had for her future.