"Ahem," Hetty coughs as she and Stephanie stare down at me. I roll over in my room, the cold air hitting my body waking me up. I grip my blanket, hiding my body. I look to see if Kai had been caught with me but he was nowhere to be seen, he must have left during the night.

"Where is Iris?" I ask, looking at my two least favourite maids.

Stephanie crossed her arms, frowning as she spoke, "She's doing your washing. Why are you not dressed?!"

"It was hot last night, so I slept naked," I lied.

Hetty looks at my dress dropped on the floor, my heels thrown across the room, "Emperor Mikhail is arriving this morning, your father has chosen a special dress for you." I look at the dress in her arms, from what I can see, it's white and floral, not my style.

I hop out of my bed, my blanket still covering my body as I walk over to my dressing screen. Hetty puts the dress on the screen and I get a better chance to inspect it. It's a pretty dress, the fabric is white and has light pink flowers on it, there is a corset and princess sleeves, it's a nice dress but not my style, it looks like something Hyacinth would wear rather than me. I put my dress on with little help from my maids. It's tight and presents my figure nicely, like a finishing bow on a sparkly prize.

Stephanie fusses me into my seat, there they start to work on my hair and makeup for the day.

My mother had a pair of sunglasses on. Her hair was done up regally, in elaborate curls and lops, her crown made of gold and sapphires. She looked like a clown. My father stood beside her, he was much more put together, his dirty blond hair gelled back, his suit ironed and not a loose thread in sight. Cora was in front of them, she wore a light pink dress and had a face full of blush, she looked beautiful, her light brown hair simply worn down.

Clarkson and Hyacinth stood to the side, close to the hallway so that they could sneak off after they introduced themselves. The walls of the grand opening were painted with palace staff; maids, guards and butlers fused to meet the foreign royals.

I glance over to where my maids are and see Iris, she's giving me a confident smile but I know she feels as helpless as I do.

I'm about to be introduced to my fiance...

The doors to the palace open and I see at least twenty different people. At the front of the mob are two blond men, one with curls and the other in odd attire. An elderly man announces them, "Emperor Mikhail Korolyov of Russia," he points to the man in odd clothing, I frown, taking him in. He's handsome but in the troublesome type of way, he looks like the type of man who isn't used to being told no.

"And Fredrik de Monpezat, Prince of Swendway." The curly blond boy looks kind enough. But, I know how Cora feels about being shackled to a man. Fredrik offered me and my sister a smile.

There was a moment of silence. I wasn't going to say anything, in fact, I was willing to stand here for hours, doing nothing but staring at my nails but then Cora swept her feet forward and lowered herself in a curtsey. "Hello, Your Highness," she murmurs quietly. "Can I speak to you in private?"

Fredrik nods, his smile still on his face, "Of course, Your Highness."

Fredrik and Cora walked off, leaving me with Mikhail.

Mikhail's face is all business, no smile, no smirk. "Princess Caitlyn, would you too like to be removed?"

I shake my head, "I am very fine here."

He frowns, but I hold my ground. My father takes a step forward so that he is now in line with me, he places a hand on my back giving me a small shove towards the Emperor, "You two get to know each other, in a few hours we will be announcing your engagement to the country!" My father says in a cheerful tone as if this is an occasion to be enjoyed.

I roll my eyes, as much as I want to argue I know it's useless, there was no point, I'm outnumbered. I sigh, "Fine."

Mikhail nods, wrapping his arm around mine, "Lead the way, Princess."

— • —

I took Mikhail to the library. I'm not a strong reader, books bore me, so I figured it would be the perfect place to make me look like an undesirable bride. Mikhail looks around the library, looking unimpressed, no doubt his library back in Russia was double the size. Mikhail picks up some old book and turns to me, "Do you read, Princess Caitlyn?"

I shake my head, trying to look as ditzy as possible, the correct answer is yes. My and my sisters' etiquette teacher has taught us all different types of literature, in English, French and dabbles of Russian. 'If you are to marry well, you first must be well educated' my father would tell us. I looked at Mikhail, the man was only interested in marrying me because he wanted heirs. He wouldn't want an illiterate wife and risk having an unfit heir. "Reading hurts my head," I say playing into the role of a ditzy princess. He puts the book back, his expression remaining like stone. Why does this guy have to be so hard to read?!

I remove my arm from his and make my way over to the couch near the windows. I wonder how Cora and Fredik are doing. Fredik seems like a much more ideal match than Mikhail but I know Cora could never love him. I bit my lip, I hate my grandfather and how he made the stupid law banning same-sex marriage. "You seem to be lost in thought."

"You think?!"

Mikhail crosses his arms, "I know you do not wish to marry me but it is a great honour. I am the last of my house, after me, the Korolyov family will be no more, that is, unless I have children."

"So that's why you want heirs. To continue your line?" I question him. He nods. I feel sick, I don't want to be a parent, let alone queen of a country I've never been to.

Mikhail's lips curl into an oddly shaped smile, "Of course, why else would I want heirs?"

The words sting, reminding me of my own parents, a bitter thought comes to my mind; to have a family, to raise children and have a family who loves and supports you unconditionally, a family that wouldn't force you into marriage with a stranger. I bit my lip, I wanted to say every reason that came flooding to my mind but my throat became dry. I take a deep breath, "What if I don't want to have children?"

Mikhail laughs making me flinch, his laughter echoing throughout the large library, as if I said some sort of funny joke, "It is a woman's job to have children. Of course, you want children."

My blood boils as I look at the man in front of me, his blond hair coming undone as he laughs in front of my face. I look at his dimples, what others might find enduring, I find cruel. How dare he laugh about a question so serious? I turn away from him, my anger threatening to spill over if I have to look at his smug face for another second. In the gardens, I see Fredrik and Cora strolling arm-in-arm, Cora laughing and engaging in conversation with the Prince. At least Fredrik seems genuine. Perhaps Cora can explain her situation to Fredrik and get him to call off their engagement.

As I watch them, I feel my anger begin to settle, once I am calm enough to turn to face the Emperor, "Is there anything else you would like for us to discuss?"

Mikhail shakes his head, "Great! We should head back to my father, he wanted to prep us for when we're interviewed for The Report."

— • —

"Okay everyone, take your seats," Angie James says as I walk towards my seat, her white dress swaying.

"Girls, a word?" My father stands in front of me, blocking me from my seat next to Mikhail, a part of me is grateful that I can get another moment away from the perv.

Cora gulps as she glances at me silently, "What is it this time?"

I roll my eyes, can't our father leave us alone for just one moment, it's bad enough that he forces me into a marriage with a pervert, now I need to go onto live television and act like it's a love match. My father glares at me, grabbing a strand of my hair and placing it behind my ear. I glance at Cora, what is he doing? My father sighs, "Do I need to remind you how important this is?"

"No father," Cora laments.

My father walks backstage, instructing us to follow. I look at Cora, waiting for her to make the first move, she shrugs and follows him, I begrudgingly follow them.

Once we're backstage, my father's face turns into a stern frown.

I keep my head up, my eyes locked on Porter, whatever he's going to say, he'll say to my face. Cora looks at the ground, her face covered with shame and guilt, it makes my blood boil that my father made her feel like that. "Head up Cora," My father scolds.

Cora sighs, lifting her head up. Father smiled as she did what she was told. "You girls have such pretty faces, but you waste them with your ugly frowns."

My blood boils, I'm used to people seeing me as nothing more than a pretty object but not my sister, not Cora. I scoff, "What's your excuse then."

"Cait!" Cora whispers. "Don't anger father? Please?"

I throw my arms in the air and walk back to the stage, I don't want to leave Cora alone with my father but I can't stand to be there any longer. If Cora didn't want me to anger Father, then it was best that I wasn't near him.

I take my seat next to Mikhail, he looks at me and shakes his head, "Your cheeks are red."

"So what."

Mikhail stares at me shocked before turning to face the camera, staring at the distance. I can't believe I'm being forced to marry this dud.

I look around the room, and in the corner, I see Angie frantically reading her lines. Angie James is Barton Allory's assistant, she's never been on camera before but for the last two years, she's always been behind the scenes running things. I only know a bit about Angie's past. She was a model as a child but was forced to retire when she became pregnant with her daughter Jeanete Arthur, I remember the only reason why Angie got this job was because her husband died and she needed to provide for Jeanie. My respect for Angie is so high, she is only seven years older than me and yet she and her daughter were thriving in the world all by themself, without a man pulling them down.

Cora returns to the stage and takes a seat next to Fredrik.

Angie notices Cora's return and places her in front of the camera. "We're live on my 3. 1, 2," the light on the camera turns green.

"Hello, Illèa! My name is Angie James, today I'm going to be sharing some exciting news with you all. Princess Cordelia and Caitlyn, say hello to our lovely country!"

Cora waves to the camera. "Good evening!" She says cheerfully.

I give the camera a half-arsed smile, I just want this to be over and done with, "Hello everyone."

Angie clapped her hands, faking excitement, "I'm sure a lot of you at home are wondering what the sudden Report is for and who the two handsome men behind me are. Should I say or would you girls like to do the honours?"

Cora shakes her head but our father shoots her a look. She sighs, turning to Angie, "We are engaged!" She says, fake excitement washing over her voice. "In two weeks according to our parents, we will be wed to the king of Russia and the prince of Swendway."

Mikhail goes to grab my hand but I yank my hand away from him. I shot him a look, what the hell does he think he's doing??

Angie grins, "That's right, our young Princess' are going to be Queens! How exciting?!"

Yeah, being forced to marry a creep, how exciting? I roll my eyes.

"The exciting news continues tonight, as I'm interviewing the two lovely new couples."

"So, who's first?!"

I shake my head, looking at Mikhail, my eyes begging him not to go first. He turns to Angie and grins, "Caitlyn and I would love to go first, we're just booming with excitement."

This dumb bitch. I grab a fistful of my dress, pulling at the fabric, Mikhail notices and firmly grabs my hand, so that this time I can't pull my hand away.

Cora looks at us and shakes her head, she grabs Fredrik's hand and stands up. "Actually, I would like to go first, Angie. If you don't mind giving us the honour?"

"Oh—" Angie looks at the two of us, Mikhail staring daggers into the back of Cora's head while his grip on me tightens. "Of course, Princess. After all, I'm sure Illéa is dying to know all about its country's sweetheart."

"Thank you, Angie," She beams as Cora joins Angie James on centre stage. She sits on the bar stool, grabbing the microphone. Fredrik follows her lead.

I blank out. Suddenly Mikhail is standing up, his strong grip pulling me up, it scares me how much he is stronger than me. We walk up to the centre of the stage, I look around, I swear Cora was there just a second ago. Cora and Fredrik are back in their seats, how long did I blank out for?

Mikhail grabs his microphone and flashes a grin at the camera, "Hello Illéa!"

I look at my microphone, my hands shaking as I go to pick it up. I glance over to my parents, Clarkson and Hyacinth, my parents are glaring at me, their eyes watching intently as I hesitate. Clarkson looks bored out of his mind, like always he is uninterested in anything involving me and Cora. Hyacinth gives me a sympathetic look. I take a deep breath and pick up my microphone. "Let's start this interview."

"I like your enthusiasm, Princess Caitlyn," Angie looks down at her list of questions, "The first question that is on everyone's mind. How did you two lovebirds meet?"

Mikhail beams with pride, his expression is as fake as my mother's hair colour. "From the moment I laid eyes on Princess Caitlyn, I knew she was meant to be my queen and future mother to my children." I cringed when he brought up children again. I don't want to get pregnant and have children.

I smirk, "I wish that I could say it was the same for me Ange, I took one look at this guy and wanted to send me back," I say jokingly, getting a hesitant laugh from Angie. Mikhail twisted my arm, hard enough to know that he wasn't pleased with my answer, "But he's grown on me," I added. He let go of my arm, smiling in approval.

Angie eyes my hand, she's an observant lady. Angie nods before continuing on, "My marriage was a lot like that, it took me a while to love my old man."

I recall Angie's wedding, it was all over the news. Angie was barely 19, marrying someone older than my parents, she had her daughter less than a year later.

The silence was deafening, Mikhail looked unimpressed, clearly he didn't like being compared to an old man.

There were a few awkward moments before Angie decided to ask the next question, "So, what is it like finding the one?"

"Painful," I mutter, earning a glare from my father.

Mikhail leans down to whisper in my ear, "Caitlyn, it's for the best you said something delightful about our relationship. You don't want to upset your father, do you?" He took over. "It was simple, Angie, I had heard that the princess has proven that she's old enough for marriage and bearing children. I wanted a wife who is responsible beyond her years."

Angie gives us a painful smile, no doubt trying to think of a way to save this interview.

I take a moment to think about two possible responses, 1, I laugh and say that I've always wanted children, aka the biggest lie I've ever told or 2, I say nothing and cop a beating from my mother later. I decided on the second.

I take a deep breath, listening as the interview crashes and burns, I glance over to my parents, my father looks red in the face while my mother looks as if she's getting ready to beat me. Mikhail's grip on me tightens as he waits for me to say something but I refuse.

"That's right, Princess Caitlyn has always been a young strong mature woman, I for once can't wait to see the amazing mother she grows into."

I look at Mikhail's face, he is grinning wildly, "I have made the right choice to marry the princess then."

I just sit there, my ears ringing as my body turns into fight or flight mode. "Are there any more questions?" I ask.

Angie looks at her page before she looks at me, "No, that's all."

I quickly got up out of my seat, quick enough that Mikhail lost his grip and that I could escape him. I sit down next to Cora and wait for The Report to end.