Chapter 5
Asher's POV
The morning after was hell for me, when I headed downstairs for breakfast I saw every single newspaper in the Kingdom on the dining table. Headlines like "We Finally Have a Princess" or "Royal Family Celebrates Omega Presentation with New Title: PRINCESS!" basically along those lines. Oh and my face. Literally my face was the front page of every single damn one. Aislinn was in the middle of reading one of the papers, and said nothing as I began to gather every single paper off the table. When I ripped the one she was reading out of her hands, she finally looked at me.
"I'm still reading that!"
"Don't care. I'm burning it." I walked to the fireplace in the living room, Aislinn's followed me.
"Come on it's not that bad." I snorted in response to her.
"Then you be the Princess."
"Alas I am but an Alpha, if anything I would be a Prince." I tossed the papers into the fireplace.
"Well that's just fan-fucking-tastic for you sis!" I grabbed the box of matches off the mantel and opened the box. Striking the match along the rough edge, the smell of sulfur filled the air. I dropped the lit match on the many news papers.
"Look it's not like this changes anything." She rubbed my back gently.
"It does! It changes everything! The way I'm treated, I won't be able to go anywhere without being recognized. What about what I want to do with my life? What if I wanna be an actor or a freaking rock star? Not anymore, because I'm a fucking Princess. Why do Omega's have to be a Princess? Why is this a stupid rule anyways!"
"Well, I'm pretty sure it was because of Grandmother Ashley"
"It was a rhetorical question Aislinn!" I yelled back at her. All I wanted was to pursue music and live a fun filled life. Doing all the things I regretted never doing in my past life. Now I was bogged down with responsibilities and obligations. My sister sighed, the two of us stood there silently watching the papers burn.
"Ash look at me." I turned to face her.
"Talk to me. What is going on? You've changed so much since your accident and your heat. You're not the same person anymore. You're getting piercings, your clothing is completely the opposite of what you used to wear, it's almost like you're a completely different person. What is going on in that head of yours?"
As my sister spoke I found myself having trouble looking at her, I turned my head as the flames began to die. Right as the flames died and only lingering embers and smoke was left I turned back to her.
"I don't want to die with regrets." I whispered as I wrapped my arms around my body in an attempt to self soothe the wild emotions inside of me. "I can't control my emotions. One minute I'm angry, the next I'm laughing hysterically. I'm terrified that if something happens to me again and I die, I'll be weighed down by my regrets. I'm tired of living by the roles, I tried to force myself to be an Alpha my whole childhood. I thought if I dressed right, acted right, talked right, walked the right way, there was this hope in my heart that I would present Alpha and not Omega. You and Astor are both superior Alpha's. I feel like I got screwed." A tear slipped down my cheek, and I brushed it away with the back of my hand.
"Asher, you can't change the fact that you are an Omega and you can't change the rules. The only thing you can change is how you respond to the things that happen. Your actions and your choices, that is all you can control. If this is how you want to dress, if this is the person you truly feel you are then I support you a hundred percent."
"Aislinn, please don't let me a political marriage pawn." I whispered to my sister. Past life memories cropped up again, getting married to someone not because of love but because I thought that I didn't deserve better. Getting cheated on over and over again. Getting left alone while I was at the sickest point of my former life. Dying alone. All of these things happening again terrified me. I could feel my body trembling, and Aislinn must have noticed as well because she suddenly grabbed me in a tight hug.
"I'll do everything in my power to let you choose your own Alpha" she whispered in my ear, as we clung to each other. After our parents died Aislinn, Astor, and I only had each other. Astor was always the wild one, instead of going to the Academy she went off to some scholar academy in the Elven Kingdom. So really all I had was Aislinn, who has been not just my sister, but a parent and at times like this a true friend.
"Come on Princess, you need some food in you." I laughed as I wiped the tears from my eyes.
"Yeah okay."
After the heart to heart with Aislinn I was feeling much better, but so much started happening that I wasn't able to breathe alone for the next week before leaving for the Academy. I was introduced to a Griffin-shifter, whose name was no shit Gryphon.
"Wait. You're a Griffin-shifter?" I asked
"Yes."
"And your name is actually Gryphon?" I pressed my lips together so as not to laugh at the irony of it.
"My parents aren't very creative." Her eyes twinkled with amusement even though her face looked dead pan.
"Apparently." I couldn't help but laugh then.
That was my first interaction with my new body guard. Over the next few days we actually found out we got along really well. Considering we would basically end up spending the rest of our lives together, it was a really good thing. Apparently Aislinn told me that Gryphon had volunteered to be my body guard at the Academy. She told my sister that when she saw my picture in the paper, she knew that I was her treasure. I wasn't really sure what that meant, but it's apparently a really big deal. Griffin-sifters are known for their protective instincts, and most people desperately want them as body guards. They are fiercely loyal, and will sacrifice everything for their charge. My sister told me I was exceptionally lucky, and it was even better that we got along. Then there was the new beta human maid I was assigned. She was pretty quiet and very reserved, but really good at her job. She figured out my aesthetic within in a few days, and I never had to correct even once. Her name was Beth.
Royalty is allowed one servant and one body guard at the Academy, Beth had left earlier with several other servants to head to the Academy to set up my quarters assigned there. It was just me, Aislinn, and Gryphon boarding the airship to Center City, which was the city that popped up around the Academy. Honestly, people in this world really don't give much thought into naming things. The Academy is located directly in the middle of the continent, where the borders of four of the major Kingdoms intersect. Those four are the Kingdom of Solas, Beast-Kin Kingdom, the Elven-Dwarven Alliance, and the Faerie Kingdom.
I stood on the deck of the Airship as we were heading to dock at the Academy's port. Taking in the aerial view of the Academy was truly breath taking. I would be representing the entire Kingdom as an Emissary to every single Kingdom and species that existed in this world. I was nervous, but I also felt a twinge of excitement at the unknown adventures that may lie ahead. I cheered myself in my mind 'To the college life we never experienced!' I grinned at my sister, and she smiled back.
Parting was bitter sweet, but that didn't keep Aislinn from reminding me of the millions of things she needed to.
"Yup. Got it. I'll be a good boy I promise." I said as I shooed her out of my new dorm room. Reluctantly she hovered in the doorway.
"Hey Ash?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you kid." I could see tears starting to form, so I launched myself at her. She caught me easily and we hugged tightly. "Take care of yourself. Call me or text me any time; even if it is just to chat." She smoothed my hair out of my face, and kissed my forehead.
"I love you too Aislinn. Now shoo so I can finally be independent." I gave her a little push, as she laughed.
"Fine, I'm going. I'll call you in a week if I don't hear from you."
"Why a week?"
"To at least wish you happy birthday weirdo. Did you forget?"
"Huh...yeah with everything going on I kind of did." I laughed at myself, my 18th birthday just a week away. My sister shook her head as she started heading down the three flights of stairs.
I watched her disappear and shut the door to my room, before launching myself on the king sized bed in my room. Beth tsked at me. "I just made that, Princess. Go do something while I finish setting everything up."
Beth started pushing me out the door. "But I just got Aislinn to leave. I wanna take a nap."
"No nap miss. Be back by 5:45 to get ready for the introductory dinner. It will be your first true public appearance as Princess."
"Ugh! Fine." I walked out the door. It wasn't until I was already on the shuttle that I forgot to put my choker and suppressor back on. I mentally shrugged, it's not that big of a deal after all I have Gryphon with me. I looked around for Gryphon and couldn't find her. Okay maybe not. Oh well what is the worst that can happen.