The Cursed Prince's Strange Bride



Alicia's anguished cries echoed through the palace that night as the blood moon slowly ascended to the sky, casting an eerie crimson glow upon the kingdom. The physicians scurried around, their brows furrowed with concern, but her pain proved to be beyond their understanding.

Outside the chamber, Prince Harold paced restlessly, his heart clenching in fear for his beloved Alicia.

He had desperately implored the physicians to do anything to ease her suffering. Anything at all. He hadn't used his usual commanding tone, nor did he speak to them with the authority he possessed. He had pleaded as a husband. As a lover. 

It was even more painful for him since he could not be inside with her, especially whenever she screamed out his name. 

Thankfully, Lance had dragged Paulina away, so there was one less distraction outside. 

But in the physician's voice, he had said, "We're doing all we can, my prince. But this affliction seems more spiritual than physical."

He knew that. However, he still tried. He clenched his fists, torn between his fear for Alicia and the helplessness of the situation. "She cannot endure this agony any longer. Is there no way to ease her pain? Anything at all?" His tone was desperate. Unfortunately, the physicians were at a loss. All of them. They have never encountered anything like this before. None of them knew how to handle the pain of a witch's core on the blood moon. 

As the blood moon reached its zenith, Alicia's cries intensified, causing a violent vibration that resonated throughout the kingdom. The impact was so intense that even the people outside the chamber found themselves clutching their ears in agony and gasping for air. 

The air crackled with tension, and vases scattered across the palace shattered into a thousand pieces. Every one of them present in the palace, no matter where they were, shut their ears and continued to gasp for air. Unfortunately, the ones who received the most impact were those inside the chamber with Alicia. 

Within the chamber, the physicians were thrown against the walls by an unseen force, coughing out blood from the impact while also trying to breathe. Their ears also bled, and their backs ached from the impact of the hit.

Her cries suddenly ceased, leaving behind a haunting silence.

Harold dropped his hands from his ears and rushed in, only to find Alicia sitting on the bed, eyes ablaze with an unsettling crimson hue, matching the blood moon outside the broken window. 

"Ali–" Harold paused, and then he looked around the room. Everything was a mess. It looked like the room had been turned upside down, and the physicians were also trying to get up. 

Harold held the door open for them as they struggled to get up and scurried out of the room, especially when they saw her eyes.

"Alicia?" he called quietly, his voice choked with emotion.

Her fiery gaze met his, and the flames in her eyes softened, as did the impact she had on everyone else except for Harold. At once, she coughed, and blood stained her lips, sending shivers down Harold's spine.

But he couldn't bring himself to approach her, as his body was rejecting her. He didn't need the voice to whisper in his head to tell him this was not their actual mate. He was now one with his wolf.

"Amber..." He called, his voice trembling with heartache.

"I feel the same way seeing you," Amber said weakly as she looked at him. 

But deep down within them, they both knew this was going to be the last time they would feel this way. 

Amber winced in pain and touched her chest, feeling the intense pain there. Then she lifted her eyes and looked at the moon outside, sadness in her eyes. 

The door suddenly creaked open, and Harvey, still recovering from his earlier injuries, stumbled into the room with a hand on his stomach, wincing in pain. He looked very thin and sickly; all signs of his nobility were gone.

"Amber," he called out softly, his heart breaking at the sight of her.

Amber turned her eyes away from the window to look at him, and then she forced out a smile at him through her tears, her voice barely a whisper. "I'm glad to see you one last time before it's all over," she said, her gaze never leaving his.

Harvey choked on a sob and slowly approached her bed. Despite the pain he felt, he knelt beside her, tears streaming down his face. "I... should have protected you better. I'm sorry," he said, his voice choked with guilt.

Amber shook her head gently, despite the pain it caused her. "You did all you could, Harvey. Even more." She spoke through tears and tried to touch him, but she withdrew her hand and sniffled. 

Harvey shook his head, sobbing. With his cracked voice, he asked weakly, "Could things have... been different for us? If we hadn't been bound by these fates?"

It was too late. 

Amber shut her eyes, tears mingling with the blood on her cheeks as she spoke quietly. 

"Maybe we... could have been great hunters." 

She opened her eyes, and both misty eyes met as she added, "You would have been better than me. You are great at climbing," she said, a faint smile touching her lips.

Harvey chuckled through his tears, his snort mixing with his tears. 

"You... asked me before. My favourite colour."

Harvey looked at her and seemed to remember that moment, nodding. 

"It is green. The green from the hairpin you gave me." She sniffled and broke into tears as she said, "I'm... I'm sorry I lost it."

Harvey shook his head. "It's alright. I can... I can get you m-more." He cried. 

That was only wishful thinking. He knew it was not possible.

Harold could no longer watch this scene and turned, stepping out of the room with intense pain in his heart. 

Amber's strength waned, but she continued speaking, her voice barely above a whisper. "You... were the only good thing in my wretched life," she admitted. "If... our fates were different. Maybe... maybe I... would have been beside you. For a long... time." she said, her indirect confession leaving him stunned.

Harvey wept openly, unable to contain the surge of emotions within him. "Is there no other way to save you?" he pleaded, grasping onto hope. He reached for her hand but quickly withdrew it when he got burned from merely touching her. 

She shook her head, her eyes filled with sorrow.

"No, Harvey. My time here is over," she said, her voice tinged with finality. "But... we will meet again. We shall reunite in a realm where our time flows in harmony," She promised Harvey, who was bawling his eyes out.