Prophecies And Lies

"You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally getting better than your dreams."

-Dr. seuss

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The summer moon shone through Ariana's window as she tossed and turned in bed, wanting to fall asleep but only to huff in annoyance when her mind wouldn't stop its relentless thinking about the King and her empty stomach.

Yes, the king, whom she had thought was being absurd by announcing to her that she was his mate, How could that be possible, she thought to herself?

She barely even had a wolf; she was far too weak to ever be queen. For crying out loud, she wasn't even beautiful; she was far from it; she was skinny that's all she was. Her bones were so jarringly prominent around her rib cage that she could have been mistaken for a skeleton. She wasn't like this by choice, but it was all she had. It was either being skinny like a bag of bones for the rest of her life or dying. She would choose skinny over death any day, even though it meant she had to endure endless hours of torture while sitting at dinner tables where everyone laughed and cheered and dug into exquisite meals while she sat in her solemn silence wondering how the bread had tasted or how flavoursome the chocolate cake with that vanilla icing was.

Giving up on having any decent amount of sleep, Ariana got up to find her way to the Royal Kitchen, where she planned to spend her night staring at food while letting her mouth salivate to all its desire; it wasn't like she could eat, being under Alpha's command and all that.

For a brief moment, she wondered if she could trick one of the many Alphas that had come to the coronation into making her eat more than one meal a day. It was a stupid, irrational idea, but it may have worked if she were as fierce as Nathaniel or had Andria's guts.

Through long, dark, candle-lit halls, she walked where the floors were draped in a royal red velvet, her feet making soft patting sounds against the cushioned floor. She was in her chemise, an almost sheer white fabric that reached her knees but barely hid anything underneath. She knew her mother would have fainted if she had seen her wondering the halls in such little clothing.

She took a cold left, expecting to be taken to the kitchens, but instead was met with something hard but warm, looking up, she saw the king, standing tall in his black robes, his hair a toe curling mess falling onto his forehead, and his dark sapphire eyes hosting inconceivable emotion against his strong jaw.What a stunning specimen, Ariana thought to herself.He looked down at her with his pupils expanding and his wolf emitting a ferocious growl when he noticed that the white fabric she wore barely hid her rose-colored nipples or the curve of her hips.

He pushes her roughly so that her back is against the wall. Her mind turned to mush at their close proximity, her breathing becoming labored. What the hell was wrong with her? she wondered.

"What are you doing wearing that?" He asked, his eyes ablaze with rage and something Arianna couldn't comprehend.

"n...no...nothing. I was just headed to the kitchens, your majesty," Ariana stuttered out, peering into the king's eyes, who was standing so close that she could almost feel his forehead leaning against hers.

He cups her jaw and looks into her eyes with a veracious, predatory stare while whispering aloud, "Do you really think I believe that?"

"Your majesty, I am not lying," Ariana breathed out, half terrified and half anticipating what would happen next.

"How am I to believe that?" He asked with a raised brow.

"Please, I swear I am not lying," Ariana said with a whimper, causing the King to narrow his eyes at her before letting out an exasperated sigh as he said, "Fine, I believe you."

"Thank you for believing me, your majesty," Ariana said, her voice solemn, her eyes growing wide with innocence, making the king swallow hard as his eyes trailed down from her face to her breast, where her luscious pink nipples showed through the white fabric that she wore.

"Hmm...well, you are a sight to behold; how could I not have believed you?" Arianna shivered with disgust as the King leaned in closer."But remember, you are mine, only mine," the King said as he took in her scent, "so only I get to see you in such little clothing."

"What?!" Ariana's breathy voice came as she took her bottom lip between her teeth, causing the King to curse internally as he felt himself hardening in his night clothes.

"You are mine," the king's husky voice spoke as he traced her lips with his thumb, causing her to nod her head in a daze as her emotions overrode her logical thinking.

"Come, little kitten, let's take you to the kitchens," the king says with a boyish grin, extending his hand for Ariana to take.

Upon entering the kitchen, Ariana was met with what seemed to be a million pots and pans hanging from the walls, along with a dozen stone tables and a trillion other fixtures. The place was huge, just like the rest of the palace.

"Take a seat; I'll bring us something to eat," the King said, his eyes showing the giddy happiness he felt.

"Oh no, your Majesty, it wouldn't be proper; let me bring you food." Ariana said as she rushed to where the King was going.

"No, and for the goddess' sake, Ariana, leave your formalities behind; you are my mate." The king replied with a sigh that sounded exasperated.

"Ok, your majesty," Ariana says in her friendliest voice, causing the King to clench his jaw in anger.

"Call me William or Will," said the King.

"OK," Ariana said, "but you majesty, how can I trust you to be my mate?"

"Are you questioning my loyalty?" William asked in a voice that was freakishly calm.

"Yes, but how can I trust you when I saw you taking advantage of a helpless female?" Ariana said as she tried to look intimidating by folding her arms against her chest.

"Are you envious of her?" William said with a chuckle in his voice.

"I am not!" Ariana tried to explain her emotions when she herself didn't understand them.

"You can be jealous all you want, little kitten, but believe me when I say that the female you saw that night was only seeking help." William said with a smirk as he mindlessly curled a strand of her hair around his finger, seemingly intrigued by its beauty.

"I don't believe you; if you wish me to, I will need to meet the female for myself." Ariana said, causing him to narrow his eyes at her.

"Fine, but change your tone, mate, as I am your king before your mate," William said as his eyes turned pitch black. Showing his wolf, who wanted her to submit to him, but she didn't; instead, she went to take a seat on one of the tables in silence, making him let out a disapproving growl as she looked back up at him with big doe eyes.

Sighing in frustration, William walked away to the cooling room, a steel-contained room enchanted by a witch to preserve food at temperatures that could be manually lowered or raised.

Coming back, he laid a single plait of chocolate sponge cake decorated with wild berries in front of Ariana, startling her as she hadn't heard him approach. Her eyes widen as she shifts her gaze from the cake to the King and back; surely he didn't expect her to eat.

"What's that look? It's just cake, I promise I haven't poisoned it," William said with a frown etched on his lips as he asked in a half-joking, half worried tone, "or do you not like cake?"

In all honesty, Ariana never liked cake; she found it too sweet, with the icing even sweeter than the sponge, and a smell that seemed too sugar coated for her liking, but instead of arguing with the King and putting him in a bad mood, she simply said, "No, I do like it."

"Then eat," the King commanded, more than slightly frustrated at seeing Ariana's slow pace as he furrowed his brow and pursed his lips , making Ariana internally laugh at his cuteness when he brought it to her lips.

"No," Ariana said, enjoying tormenting him.

"Why?" he asked, his jaw clenching at not understanding his mate.

"I just don't want to, " Ariana said, her demeanour changing from a playful one to a more serious one. The king noticed the change, taking a mental note of it. He wanted to see his mate's reaction to food, it hadn't gone unnoticed by him that his mate was much skinnier than the average female and that he rarely ever saw her eating at any banquet or luncheon.

Wanting to press for more answers, he asked, "Why?"

"Because..." Ariana left off as she swallowed down the bile that had risen up and wiped her sweaty hands off her chemise.

"Because of what?" William tried pushing for more, knowing full well that he was venturing into cold waters that may lead to his mate leaving, but he had to know for her safety and health.

"Because... I can't. The Alpha, the punishment," Ariana trailed off, her throat closing in on itself as it dried, making her swallow harshly as her eyes brimmed with unshed tears that threatened to spill.

Ariana had never felt so emotionally vulnerable in her life as she spilled out the dread that always followed her through every season of her life, but for some reason she felt safe telling Will as he wrapped his arms around her in a comforting embrace while he trailed his hands up and down the length of her hair and whispered sweet nothings into her ears.

"It's okay, sweet kitten, I know," Will said as he stepped away and took hold of her cheek in a sweet gesture, " I have always known."

"How?" Ariana asked, bewildered, as Will wiped away the stray tears that had left her eyes.

"No more questions, " a whispered demand by Will ,as he took a seat beside her and lifted her on to his lap ,causing her cheeks to blossom into baby pink as she hide in the crook of his neck, feeling embarrassed, making him let out a husky chuckle at her cuteness.

"Look at me," Will said, causing Ariana to reluctantly lean back and look into his eyes. The same eyes that haunted her in her sleep and made every cell in her body stop respiring, anticipating his next words, She felt as though she was transfixed by the blue hue of his eyes, which had splashes of silver in them, a sign that the Moon Godessess blood ran through his veins. Ariana knew in that very moment that even though her mind didn't truly believe that he was her mate, her heart did, as she covered the walls of her mind with the memory of his eyes.

"You follow no command, not from an alpha or from me." Will spoke, his face serious and his voice strong. Ariana could tell it wasn't Will speaking; it was the king inside of him: "You are to be the queen of the wolf; you take no command from any alpha."

"What? But how are you so sure that we are even mates?" Ariana tried asking as she tried getting up from his lap, which only caused him to tighten his arms around her.

"What did I say? No more questions," William said dangerously low as he nibbled on her ear, making her shudder in excitement and something more.

"B..but," Ariana said as she tried to find words to say but was beaten by Will.

"No more words," Will said as he picked up the fork, scooping some cake on it, and put it to her lips, "Eat."

Opening her mouth reluctantly to let the cake in, Ariana closed her eyes, waiting for the searing pain that always exploded in her throat ,or the choking that began after her first swallow; ,this usually occurred when ever she went against Alpha Alec's command, but nothing happened apart from the delicious sweetness of the cake melting into her mouth, causing her to lean further into Will's chest as she relaxed, causing him to smile against her hair.

Looking up at Will with astonished eyes, who only smiled at her and said, "Look, nothing happened; nothing will ever happen."

"How... how did you know?" Ariana looked bewildered.

"Well, I know a lot of things, little Kitten," Will said with a bright smile as he got another forkful of cake for her, "now open up, before I decide to keep the cake for myself."

This time, Ariana opened her mouth less reluctantly than last time, almost seeming eager as she closed her eyes, waiting for the cake to enter her mouth. But she felt nothing as she opened her eyes to see Will eating the cake with a cheeky grin on his face.

"Why?" Ariana asked with disappointment in her voice.

"Well, I just needed a taste of the cake and of this," Will said, his grin widening.

"Wh..." Ariana tried speaking, only to be cut short as Will's warm lips landed on hers, igniting a heat unlike any other inside of her, as they both melted into the passionate embrace of heartfelt emotion, singing the lullaby of desire to one another.

Will's fingers tightened around her neck, causing her to gasp out loud in surprise, letting his tongue push through her lips as she emitted a sinful moan as her fingers roamed the distance of his hard back to his hair.

A loud cough resonated through the kitchen, causing the two to split their embrace in a frenzy of limbs as Will let out an angry growl at the intrusion.

Ariana turned to look at the intruder, only to freeze as the blood in her heated skin drained at the silhouette that stood before them.