I · Zahara

Ever since I was found nearly dead and discarded in the outskirts of the Royal Capital at 14 years old, 7 years ago, and they took me as their daughter, even though I had no memories of my life or who I was, aside from my name being Zahara, my life has been calm and cold.

They brought me to the north, where they reigned as Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of the great Delways House, the coldest land in the Kingdom of Mhorgaine, and made me a Princess, bringing their best physicians to take care of me and make sure I was alive.

Those physicians, after taking care of me, came to the conclusion that someone had attacked me with killing intent, I had been beaten in vital organs and had many of my bones broken in brute force. However, given the said quality of the bloodied dresses I was found in, they were certain that I wasn't a peasant, even less of a merchant family.

But with my lack of memories, there was nothing to be done, all because I had been hit in the head more than once. Had their excellencies not found me when they did, I would been dead in a matter of an hour after they came around. They saved my life, and for that, even with no memories, I was profoundly grateful.

It took me about two years, but I was finally able to call them mother and father, and to my comfort, they cried with happiness when I did. It was little before they stepped down from their positions to let their oldest son take over, I was 16, he was 33 then. Mother and father were the loveliest and warmest people I've met, even in the coldness of the south, whereas their son was always... cold.

Prince Alec Cornelius Delway, now Grand Duke, the only heir of the Delway, the only House who's connected to the Royals by blood, as Queen Olivia Morghaine was born a Delway, and father's youngest sister, his only sibling.

If Grand Duchys hold even more power than the Hand of the King, the King's Mistress, and the children the King had with his Mistress, the northern Grand Duchy Delway holds more power than all the others together in more than a way. They have the largest territory, the land can't even be attacked because of this eternal freezing cold, and father is coincidentally or not, the Hand of the King and his best friend and brother-in-law.

And the heir of all that overwhelming power is Alec alone, as he's the sole, trueborn, heir. After all, I'm nothing, not really, I stay as the mysterious Delway Princess solely because I was adopted at 14, I'm not their real daughter, and I'm definitely not Alec's sister in any way. He's made that very clear with his disdain.

From all the 7 years I've know him, from the time he was 31 to now, at 38, he has never exchanged unnecessary words with me, the few times he did can be counted in my fingers and it was solely for the sake of mother and father. When they were around, he always ignored me, avoiding me with his eyes as if I wasn't worthy, as if the sight of me disgusted him. And when they weren't, he glared at me as if he wanted me to drop dead.

Despite his normal poker face, when it comes to me, Alec has a face with subtitles. It's as clear as day that he despises having to share his parents affection with a nobody like me, who was rescue after someone attempted to murder me, plus my unknown origins. He despises to have to see me around, 'taking advantage' of the power of the Delway to live 'lavishly'.

I don't live lavishly, I don't ask for anything, I take what they give me and nothing else, I don't impose in anyone and I try to be kind.

In my heart, I doubt I was ever one to care about what anyone think, I'm still that way, I have heard many staff, mostly woman, saying mean things about me, saying I planned all this, that I was a peasant, and countless other mean and degrading rumors, such as that I had been deflowered when they tried to kill me and wasn't pure anymore.

For all that matters, I have not, the physician confirmed to me and the family that I'm still a virgin, that I was only abused physically, and that the intent was solely to kill me, nothing else. So, it's pure slander. I never cared.

I understood where they were coming from, after all, my origins are, unfortunately, unknown. I also look nothing like the people in the north, definitely not like the Delway, at all. It's an screaming difference and a proof that wherever I'm truly from, it's not the north, even if the north has always felt like my home, ever since I came here.

Mother and father are pale skinned, slander and tall, with a toned build, silver hair, father with straight hair and mother with wavy hair, him with ice blue eyes and her with lavender eyes, him still being a head taller than her. While Alec is even taller than father, with pale skin, short wavy silver hair with streaks falling over his forehead, he is sculpted in toned muscles, with grey eyes that change to ice blue and lavender depending on his mood.

He's 38, but he looks 28 easy, he has a youthful look, and he's annoyingly handsome which makes it worse the fact that he knows it. Alec is confident, arrogant, full of himself, but he isn't a show off, he is quiet, introverted, and incredibly intelligent. When he isn't in his office working, or in the training grounds, he is reading in the library.

I, on the other hand, have tanned skin, siren-shaped ruby red eyes, long lashes, dark eyebrows, full round lips, a small snub nose, deep dimples in my cheeks, freckles over my cheekbones and nose, long curly cinnamon hair, and small ears. I'm considerably shorter than mother, while she's 1.83m, I'm 1.70m with sharp collarbones, wider shoulders, an hourglass shaped body, wide round breasts, wide hips and a round ass, curvy bow toned legs, and my belly is toned with no fat.

To make my stamina better, I've began to work out on the balcony of my chambers on the 7th floor of the northernmost tower of the Grand Duchy northern castle, so, that's why I'm toned even if slim, except for the obvious localized fat in my breasts. Woman in the north have small breasts and a bigger ass, while I'm balanced, my breast are considerably bigger than all of theirs, even if it's just twice the size of my open hands.

In the middle of all these white people with silver hair and taller bodies, I... don't fit in. My being doesn't aesthetically fit in it, even if my heart is here, even if I love the cold more than anything, enough to sleep naked under my sheets, when the nights are even colder. Mother said my skin it usually warmer than theirs in here, maybe that's it.

I stand out, many think of it in a bad way, many gossip and make mean statements about me, but I dont care. Their opinion doesn't mean anything to me. That's how I am, all I care about is what I believe and feel.

Well... except for that infuriating men.

Alec's disgust of me has always hurt me, it's always made me want to crawl out of my skin, because for whatever stupid reason, I care about what he thinks, overall and of me. The more I grew, the worse he acted, and the deeper he wounded me, making me feel unwanted, unlovable, wrong, unstable. He has power over me and he hurts me with it.

I never did anything to him.

Never.

But even so, he hates me.