The Crown Thief and Her Alpha Prince

CHAPTER 11 - THE FIANCÉE

Amelia Cooper’s Point of View

All the guards and the royal family were packed in the great hall of the castle, awaiting with trepidation the arrival of the delegation from the kingdom of Ivory. One servant for each family member was present too, to help out. As she was Marjorie’s only maid now, Amelia was there too. Usually, only higher ranking members of the staff were permitted such privileges, but the princess was not a fan of the decorum and had insisted an exception be made for Amelia. 

The princess had lent her new maid a dress that was more formal than the ones that had been provided to Amelia. It was nothing over-the-top, but it was still more beautiful than Amelia had ever worn in her life. It was a deep green that matched the color of her eyes. Marjorie was quite a bit taller than Amelia, so this was a dress she wore when she was a teen years ago. It was so simple that it did not look out of fashion.

Edmund was there too, of course, to welcome his future sister-in-law. When he had seen Amelia, emotions had flashed in quick succession on his face. The only one Amelia really understood was his confusion at seeing her at such an important event. She thought she also saw his eyes darken with desire as he had taken in her new dress, but she must have been mistaken.

Edmund did not feel attraction towards her. He had been really clear. She had to remember that.

He was, of course, very dashing. Amelia had never seen him looking quite so regal. He was wearing his crown, and a very fine suit that fitted him like a glove, with a little pocket square the exact same color as Amelia’s dress. How could a man look so good both disheveled after a fight in the woods AND well put-together at a fancy event? He was so gorgeous it felt a little unfair. 

When he was not stealing glances at her, he was chatting with his own servant, an older gentleman with a big beard, and with his big brother William, who looked quite nervous. 

He did also talk a lot with a court lady, Grace, a wolf shifter of the Onyx clan. She was young, around twenty years old, with long brown hair that flowed in perfect waves. She was taller than Amelia, and she was quite a sight to behold in her bright red dress that matched her bright lipstick and hugged her luscious curves. As Amelia watched, she leaned towards Edmund, whispering something in his ear, and the usually stern Edmund flashed Grace a dashing smile.

Blood boiling, Amelia turned her gaze away. She had no right to be this angry. She felt an irrational jealousy, which was extremely stupid. Edmund was not Amelia’s. He did not even want her. Even if it did, it would not change anything. He was an arrogant asshole.

To distract herself, Amelia made sure Marjorie attire (which she had picked earlier) was truly laced properly. It had been Amelia’s first time actually lacing such a complex dress. Marjorie was wearing a gorgeous golden gown in which thousands of little gems were sewn, with a pair of matching high heels and an exquisite necklace. Amelia had little talent for hair and makeup, so she had kept things simple, with an easy up-do held together by Marjorie’s crown and just a touch of makeup. Overall, Amelia thought she did pretty well for someone who knew nothing about palace fashion. Marjorie stood out from the crowd and looked like a queen.

The herald suddenly opened the doors. Trumpets and drums sounded, as sunlight filled the room. 

“I present to you Princess Eleanor Cordova of Ivory, first of her name, first daughter of King Stephen Cordova,” he said in a strong voice, booming in the room.

A beautiful, tall woman entered, followed by what looked like forty servants all carrying heavy chests probably filled with clothes and jewelry. She was wearing a light blue dress with a long trail held by two maids, accented with white furs. Her hair was blonde, so pale it was almost white, natted in intricate braids. She looked young, barely twenty. Her very high crown left little doubt that she was the infamous Princess Eleanor. The door closed behind the newcomers.

Princess Eleanor looked around the room dispassionately, unimpressed. Amelia instantly hated her cold attitude.

The hall had been decorated to the colors of the kingdom of Ivory, with huge white and blue flags hanging from the ceiling. Bouquets of white roses were placed everywhere. A painter was in a corner, trying to capture the scene and Eleanor’s beauty.

“What a shame King Leopold, bearer of the Golden Crown of Skaven, could not be here to welcome me,” deplored Princess Eleanor after looking around the room. “The Onyx Kingdom hospitality truly is not the same as Ivory’s. Which one of you is William, again?”

She pointed between the two brothers. 

“That would be me, my Princess,” said William reverently as he stepped. “We met when we were younger, but while your beauty is forever seared in my imagination, I understand you might not remember me. I pledge that, while you stay at our castle, your every need will be satisfied. If you have any concerns, come to me. My father King Leopold might not be here yet but, in his absence, I will be a most gracious host. 

Amelia almost rolled her eyes. Prince William was playing his prince charming role a bit too hard there. Princess Eleanor looked equally unimpressed.

“You will do, I suppose,” Eleanor sighed simply. “The trip from the Ivory Kingdom has been long and exhausting. I truly hope a decent enough banquet has been prepared in my honor.”

“Of course, Princess.” replied William, bowing before her. “All delicacies you could wish for. A wing of the castle has been prepared for you and your entourage. There will also be a ball on the new moon, in little more than a week, so you will have entertainment. In the meantime -”

A loud banging sound was heard on the door. A few seconds later a stained glass shattered, broken by a rock thrown in, then another one. Thirty men armed with scythes, sticks and pitchforks entered, yelling, breaking trinkets and ripping tapestries. 

“END TO THE REIGN OF THE HARROWS.,” they chanted.

Guests screamed in panic. Amelia was scared by the intensity of the intruders. They were mostly ignoring the guests, just smashing everything they could. She had never witnessed anything quite like it. However, as a poor orphan girl, she found herself agreeing with the anger of the crowd. YES, the king and his princes needed to be overthrown. They had to stand trial for the pain they had inflicted on the population, especially the king. 

Amelia had heard of uprising against the Harrows, but, living far away, she had never seen one before. It was uplifting, seeing people fighting for what was right, for their right to govern themselves. These men had probably all lost family members and friends to hunger and cold because of the cruel taxes, just like Amelia had.

But it would have to be a bigger rebellion than a few dozens of humans.  Already, guards, both from the Onyx pack and from the Ivory Princess entourage, turned towards the intruders, fangs bared. There were only around twelve of the shifter warriors. However, if their fighting skills were anywhere close to those of Edmund’s, Amelia knew the rebels stood no chance - especially as the palace warriors were armed with long swords.

Most importantly, a real rebellion would have to wait until the Golden Crown of Skavon was gone. While it was still in possession of King Leopold, even if the humans did manage to take the castle, the tyrant could simply walk right back in his castle, and control or mislead with illusions anyone who dared oppose him. No rebellion stood a chance of lasting long while that magic object was still on the other side. 

Ten of the guards ran at the intruders, ready to fight, while the other two directed the crowd.

“To the dining room! Follow us, quickly, but orderly.”

Everyone did as they were told. The warriors were able to easily hold off the rebels, just like Amelia had suspected. Almost everyone was in the dining room, when one rebel managed to break the ranks of the guards and lurch towards Marjorie and Amelia, pitchfork first.  

In an instant Edmund was between the ladies and the intruder, as if he had been ready for that very eventuality. His hands were turned to paws, his mouth filled with wolf teeth, looking feral, more like a beast than like a man. Dark fur the same color as his had grown on the back of his hands and on his nape. One of the guards managed to pull the rebel away from the guests. Marjorie and Amelia entered the dining room. 

The only one still out was Edmund.

“My prince, you have to come in too, so we can lock the doors,” said one of the guards urgently.

Edmund did not glance back at him, his animal gaze fixated on the man that had attacked his sister and Amelia. He was not fully shifted, but his whole posture reminded Amelia of a wolf ready to pounce. She was sure he had not even heard the guard. 

“EDMUND!” Marjorie pleaded. “I’m okay. Let the guards do their job. You will regret it if you go out in the fight. Come in!” 

She grabbed the hand of her brother to pull him in but he did not bulge. When she pulled harder, he shook her off, sending her tumbling on the dining room ground.

“Edmund!” Marjorie screamed, half surprised, half terrified. “Please. Do not join the fight. Drop your scary Prince of Darkness act, and come in the dining room with us.”

Amelia thought for an instant that the princess’s fear was misplaced - nothing could happen to Edmund as he was an amazing fighter and that the insurgent crowd was mostly contained anyways. Then she realized why Marjorie was  scared. She was not afraid of the intruders.

She was afraid for the intruders. She was afraid of what her brother might do to them.

Edmund looked like he was about to rip them to shreds, like nothing was going to stop him. 

“Prince Edmund,” Amelia tried too. “Your sister and I are not hurt. We need to close the doors.”

The Prince turned towards her, then blinked. The dark fury in his eyes faded, allowing Amelia to see a bit of the golden of his irises. He shook his head as if trying to shake off his anger, then ran off into the dining room without a word or an apology, disappearing amongst the shocked guests.

Quickly, the guards closed the massive doors, and put tables behind it for good measure. They probably did not need to. Already, the chants and the battle sounds were dying down. The uprising had only lasted around 5 minutes.

Amelia helped Marjorie up. 

“Sorry about my brother,” the princess offered with a smile. “I know it must have looked quite intense… He could not control himself. Male wolves have a very strong instinct to protect their females. They will fight to the death to avoid anything happening to her.” 

Marjorie glanced meaningfully in the direction of William, who also had his fangs out, fussing over an annoyed Eleanor to make sure she was not hurt.

“Why is he so protective?” Amelia asked Marjorie, nonplussed, keeping her voice low so as to not to be overheard. “Prince William does not even know Princess Eleanor yet. And frankly, they do not seem like quite the loving match at first glance. It is an arranged marriage. He does not care about her, not really. Is she his fated mate?”

“No, I doubt William and Eleanor are fated. If they are, they are really good at hiding it… But even if they are not fated, even if he does not know Eleanor well, she is still to be his mate. She is his now. If anyone tries to attack her, or if she gets too close to any other unmated male, William’s instinct will push him to fight for her.”

“Why…” Amelia began before deciding if she really wanted to know the answer. “Why was Edmund wanting to fight? Does he… Have a female to protect?”

Imagining he had his sights on someone set her blood on fire with fury. There were several court ladies in the entourage of the Princess of Ivory that were quite beautiful - and shifters too. Amelia tried to reign down her emotions. Why would it matter to her if Edmund wanted to sleep with every last one of those ladies? It was his life. 

Edmund was not hers. He was not interested in her. 

“Edmund?” Marjorie snickered. “No lady in sight that I know of. No, he’s more the dark and brooding type than the romantic type. It would take someone pretty special to break his barriers down, more than just a pretty face. Although I must admit… Grace and him did grow close in the last months. She would be a great mate for him. Maybe she has finally managed to seduce him.”

Amelia felt a pang of hurt despite herself. Grace was so pretty. Of course, Edmund would want her.

“I do think Grace was already in the dining room when Edmund partly shifted, so protecting her was pointless by that time…” continued Marjorie. “Maybe he just wanted to defend me, because I am a female of his family. Certain wolves are more prone to fight than others. Edmund is certainly very hot-boiled. He fights well and he likes to do it. He probably just wanted to join in the action.”

The princess stopped to ponder for a moment, her brow furrowed. 

“Although I must admit, I have rarely seen him so riled up before,” Marjorie continued.  “It might be because the intruder was close to me. Usually, the fighting instinct is only triggered with that force to defend a mate, but it is not unheard of of male’s instincts taking over to protect a family member… That must be what happened.”

“Must be,” repeated Amelia. 

She knew it could not be true, but Amelia could not help but think that Edmund had been trying to defend her.