Chapter 2

It's not that diamonds are a girls best friend, but its your best friends who are your diamonds

- Gina Berreca

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Sweat. That's what Ariana felt the moment her eyes opened. She was covered in it from her forehead to her lower back. She was dripping in it as she heaved in relief, noticing that she was still clothed and alone in her chambers, meaning it was only a dream. Those hands were only a dream. Those eyes were only a dream.

Her cheeks reddened at the memory of the dream, for she had never dreamed anything so vulgar in her life.

She hurriedly got up from her bed and decided to take a long bath to get rid of the heat she felt and the throbbing ache that set in between her thighs.

Preparing the bath was much easier than getting into it as she struggled to unlace her corset from the back, almost dislocating her arm in the process, making her regret not calling a maid. Once out of the confinement of her corset, her body rejoiced in its freedom as she stepped into the warm bath.

A few minutes passed when she felt her muscles relax underneath the weight of the water. Looking down, she noticed her reflection in it as she scrutinised her steel grey eyes that looked like they'd seen better days with her long dark hair being the only vibrant thing that made her look more alive than a dead corpse. She sighed and closed her eyes, thinking her mate would only reject her if he ever met her and that if he ever did accept her, it would be to humiliate her for being born with the mark of the finem mundi.

She hated the mark, for it had made her father dislike her with a passion so strong that he himself had once stated that he would rather see her dead than alive. She even once tried burning the mark off by using heated silver it however, did not work as she had healed right after the silver was removed.

Ariana jolted up in her bath as the doors to her chambers barged open with Andria walking in with Joan and Bella in tow, carrying piles of items. While Andria held onto a small handkerchief as she stopped in front of Ariana with her arms folded against her chest.

"Oh, God, dear sister, could you not have knocked on the door?" Ariana spoke, already knowing the answer.

"No," was Andria's short response.

"Why are you all here?" Ariana asked, feeling a little agitated about being disturbed.

"To get you ready, why else?" Andria replied, only making Ariana more confused.

"Get ready for what?"

"For the Diamond Palace, of course. We can't have you embarrassing Alpha Alec with your..." Joan continued, "Not so pretty face."

"Oh, but I thought we were supposed to leave in three days," Ariana spoke as she tried to ignore the last part of what Joan had said, but failed miserably before replying with a coy smirk to Joan, "At least it's prettier than yours."

Joan huffed up a sigh as her jaw dropped, not expecting the comeback, while Bella let out a snicker and Andria rolled her eyes at the interaction.

"Ok, I am to leave as I have to get dressed as well," Andria said with finalisation in her tone as she raised her eyebrows at Joan and Bella , " I'll leave these two to get you dressed."

She turned and hurried off towards the door before turning around and saying with a sly smile, "Girls, do make sure you don't murder her. We may still need her."

The two girls turned and looked at Ariana, who had just about gotten out of the bath .They both looked at her with narrowed eyes as they moved their stare up and down her body, making her shift uncomfortably on her feet while also making her regret coming out in front of them, even though it was normal for people, especially wolves, to be seen naked by others, in that day and age.

"Right..." Joan said as she looked down at Ariana's body, "There's a lot of work to be done."

She shared a look with Bella before they both grabbed Ariana by the arms and dragged her to the vanity table where they had set up the perfumes and oils. The two girls worked together as they covered her in illcina, which was a perfume-like spray that caused a wolf's natural scent to be more potent. It was usually never used, but with Ariana's weak and almost nonexistent wolf, it had become a necessity. They covered her cheeks in a light layer of rose pallm which gave her a pink blush. They finished the look by adding small green and yellow diamonds around her eyes, which complimented the dress she was supposed to wear.

The second her makeup was done, they laced her up into a corset at a remarkably fast speed and shoved her into a dress. The minute Ariana was in the dress, they dragged her back to the vanity table and began pulling and tugging at her hair as they braided and put it into a bun while also adding small jewels to it.

A gasp escaped Ariana's mouth as she turned to look at the mirror, not able to recognise herself in the emerald green chiffon ball gown with gold thread embroidery at the neckline and at the hem of the dress. She looked beautiful. Yes.

But she hated it, she looked too good. She wanted to tear the dress to shreds and pull her hair out of its bun. But instead, she turned around with a smile towards the girls before saying, "Thank you."

They gave her a nod, instructing her to go to the great room where everyone was waiting for her. Ariana left her chambers and began the dreadful fifteen-minute walk to the great room. You would think living in a palace would mean you could have anything at the click of a finger, but no you don't. The only thing you would ever get is your daily dose of exercise.

She turns a corner and runs into a hard body that grabs her by the arms and pushes her into a storeroom. Looking up, she notices that it's her father.

"A-A-Alpha... w-w-what?" Ariana said, with a stutter that always came up when she had to speak to the Alpha.

"Listen, girl, listen because I'm only going to say this once," the Alpha growled, "you are NOT TO SPEAK."OR LOOK. AT ANYONE. ANYONE WHO IS ABOVE YOUR STATUS."

"Understand?" When Ariana nodded, his anger spiked, causing the grey eyes they both shared to turn into molten black, showing that his wolf was present , "SPEAK. SPEAK GIRL!"

"I... I.... un... und.....understand.... Alpha," Ariana said, trembling.

"LEAVE" was the Alpha's last command causing Ariana to bolt out the room to the great room where she met her mother, who was wearing a peacock blue dress that matched the Alpha's attire, and her sister, who wore a lilac blue dress that was decorated with night blossoms which were dark blue rosses. She looked magnificent. That's all Ariana could say, Andria looked like a queen, with her golden tendrils neatly piled on her head in an elaborate way.

She couldn't help but notice that her brother was standing in the room with a dark look on his face. He was also wearing blue, the colour of their house, the House of Salver. She could feel her stomach twist with unease as she approached her brother.

"Am I not supposed to be wearing blue?" Ariana whispered to her brother as she settled next to him. She wasn't surprised by the fact that they made her wear green, it was probably her father's way of signalling that he didn't think of her as family.

"Yes you are," Nathanial whispered back with a cheeky smile as he grabbed the night blossoms on his suit and neatly put them into Ariana's hair, making her return his smile.

"Thank you," Ariana whispered back.

"Why are you thanking family, little Ari?" Nathanial asked with a chuckle ,which Ariana ignored. Nathaniel was the only one in her family that she really loved. He was there for her even when no one else was. He stood with her through everything, even when it meant that he would also be punished. Nate was also one of the most beautiful people Ariana had ever known . He had the same dark blonde hair their father had but the kind blue-green eyes that his mother had. He also had a wonderful tan that he got from spending his time training outside in the summer sun, which made him look more muscular than the average wolf.

"Anyways, where have they placed the painting?" Ariana asked as paintings which were under the location spell were usually used to travel to different places. For example, this painting was probably of the diamond palace, so when they walked through the painting it would take them there.

"Behind the drapes," Nathanial replied, "It's new."

"Do you think Andria's mate will be the king?" Ariana asked

Nate's quick response was, "I don't think so. She's too self-centred, and even if she is his mate, she will only love him for the perks of his position and will most likely ignore her duties as queen."

"hmmm...How can you say that? She has beauty and has good adequacy. I think she will be a good queen. " Ariana said, dismissing what her brother had just said.

"You must be blind. Do you not see how she treats you, her own twin sister?" Nathanial whispered out in disbelief.

"Maybe she will grow into it," Ariana tried with a light shrug.

"Want to bet on it?" Nathanial asked mischievously.

"You bet I am," Ariana replied, smiling. "If she is the king's mate, you will have to teach me hand-to-hand combat."

"Why must you learn that when you have almost mastered combat with daggers and swords." Nathanial asked, not understanding his sister.

"What if I become disarmed?" Ariana asked

"I won't let that happen," Nathanial said with an ounce of too much arrogance. "Anyway, if the King isn't her mate, you will have to teach me how to find herbs for healing and how to use them."

"Oh brother my, what has caused you to take a liking to such a feminine art?" Ariana asked, her voice laced with mockery.

"When did the science of healing become feminine ?" Nathanial asked, bewildered.

"Today, I guess," Ariana replied when the doors of the great hall opened up and the Alpha walked in, silencing the duo and getting everyone's attention.

"Let's leave. ", where the Alpha's only words