Behold The Crown

I had been out horseback riding through the forest with my best friend and body guard Killian as I tried to waste the day away, hoping to avoid what was coming. I was to be betrothed to the king of demons. I had heard tales of how cruel and ruthless he was. I in no way, had agreed to this marriage, but my parents claimed that this was the only way to stop the war. The demon king had offered my father a treaty, but in order to obtain the peace my country wanted so badly, the demon king required my hand in marriage and that I had to provide a male heir. If both of those things didn’t happen then he would continue to wage war on our country. I had just turned twenty, per my father’s request he had agreed to wait until my twentieth birthday before he would come to claim me and take me back to his castle.

“Why did they have to make this damn deal,” I spoke out, my voice full of malice. “Why couldn’t he marry my older sister, I am already in love, I was already promised to someone else,” I looked over into Killian’s blue eyes, seeing that he was just as frustrated as I was.

“Elara, just because you promised me your heart and that we would one day be together, does not mean that it will happen. You are a princess; I am a guard. You have a royal duty. As much as you may not like it, or I may not like it, you do not have a choice in the matter. I would love to take your hand in marriage but you and I both know that your parents would never approve of it.” I hated that what he said was true, but my heart belonged to him. “Now, we must be going. I know you don’t want to, but the king will be here any moment and you must be presentable. We both know that the current state you are in, is anything but that.” He leaned over and placed a kiss on my lips. Putting my hand on his cheek, I knew it would be the last kiss I’d ever receive of his.

“I love you,” I whispered, resting my forehead against his for a moment before pulling away. I gave him a slight smile. “I’ll race you back to the castle” I giggled before taking off, seeing that he wasn’t far behind me. This would probably be the last bit of fun that I would have. I had heard stories of the demon king and how he treated humans like playthings. He’d torture them until he was bored and then he’d toss them to the side as if they were nothing. He would break down girls until they practically kissed the ground he walked on.

Coming to a halt at the stables, Killian helped me down before escorting me into the castle. I made my way to my chambers, shortly after entering them myself, there was a knock on the door, my mother entering shortly after. “I know this isn’t what you want darling, but there’s no other choice. Please make sure you wear the dress that was sent for you specifically by the king. He will be expecting you to wear it” She gave me a hug before turning to leave the room.

I let out a yell of frustration, throwing my riding coat before staring at the black dress that was hanging from the room divider that I changed behind me. I’ll be damned if he thinks he’s going to get what he wants from me so easily. However, I would save my stubbornness for when we got to his castle. I would wear the dress, I would play nice as best as I could, but then once we were out of my country it would be game on.

I was thankful that Killian was allowed to come with us. He was my personal guard and while I’m sure the king would have plenty of demons to guard me, I wanted someone I knew I could trust. I quickly changed into the dress he wanted me in before fixing my hair and putting my shoes on. It was only maybe an hour after I had finished getting ready that I was informed that his entourage was arriving. I let out an internal groan before walking out of my room and toward the throne room. I stood up straighter as we approached the doors. Not bothering to hide the anger and frustration that was visible on my face, I walked into the throne room.

I couldn’t say that I wasn't caught off guard at what he had looked like. I had never seen a demon before. I was not expecting him to look so…human. I watched as he turned around, he certainly was not what I was expecting a cold-blooded evil king to look like. He had dark brown hair, followed by even darker brown eyes. I didn’t bother to bow, or to welcome him. I stood there and locked eyes with him. Tilting my head up ever so slightly so that he would get the message that this was not going to be easy for him. I was not going to submit so easily.

“Your majesty,” I said in a slightly sarcastic tone. I was going to make it as obvious as I could that I already hated him and that I wasn’t some scared pathetic little girl. I knew how to take care of myself. I knew how to use a sword. I knew how to use a bow. I wasn’t afraid of him and I was going to make it very clear.