Becoming A Crown-born

Cassidy's POV

The afternoon blurred into a chaotic whirlwind of measuring tapes, silk swatches, and clicking heels echoing across the marble floors. Aurelia Vane, the ruthless mastermind behind the Aurum-Maison fashion empire, had marched into the royal estate with an army of personal stylists. They treated me like a living mannequin. Endless racks of designer clothes, rows of handcrafted shoes, and leather bags smelling of raw, unadulterated wealth flooded the massive guest suite. I had never owned anything that did not come from a clearance bin or a thrift store. Now, my newly assigned wardrobe overflowed with custom, tailored pieces. These were the kinds of garments I could not have afforded with a lifetime of minimum-wage shifts.

When evening finally rolled around, the stylists left, and I stood alone before the gilded full-length mirror. I held my breath. The lead stylist had wrangled my stubborn dark hair into cascading, glossy waves that tumbled gracefully down my shoulders. A fragrant floral oil made the strands softer than they had ever been. Minimal makeup highlighted my features, smoothing out the exhausted lines and transforming my pale face into something striking.

But the real masterpiece was the sky-blue gown. It clung to my curves with effortless grace, the premium fabric feeling like spun water against my skin. I did not recognize the girl staring back at me. Despite my lingering terror regarding the alpha princes, I could not deny the thrill humming in my veins. I loved how expensive I looked. I loved the way the silk moved when I shifted my weight. I looked like I belonged in this palace.

I navigated the sprawling, dimly lit corridors and stepped into the grand royal dining room. The sheer scale of the long mahogany table made my chest tighten with anxiety. Luna Valerie sat at the head of the table, radiating maternal warmth and unchallenged authority. The three alpha princes were already in their seats. Kaidan sat directly across from me, his sharp jaw clenched tight, his eyes fixed stubbornly on his empty ceramic plate. Cyprian took the seat beside me, his expression an unreadable mask of cold, terrifying indifference. Ryker sat next to Kaidan. As I pulled out my heavy velvet chair and took my seat, Ryker’s gaze snapped to me. He blinked, clearly taken aback by the transformation. Over the next few minutes, I caught his dark eyes lingering on me more than once, his focus intense and unwavering.

The Luna smiled warmly, her eyes crinkling at the corners. She complimented the blue dress, telling me I looked like a true Luna Princess. She asked about my first day living in the estate, navigating the conversation with practiced grace.

“I asked your school for your academic records to understand your background better,” Luna Valerie said softly, setting her silver fork down. “I learned you are an orphan, Cassidy. I am so sorry for your loss, and I am sorry you had to endure the world alone. But you have a family now. The royal family is the single most important family in this country, and we protect our own. You will never be alone again.”

The pure, unfiltered compassion in her voice shattered my heavy defenses. A thick lump formed in my throat, and hot moisture pricked the corners of my eyes. She reached across the polished table and squeezed my hand. The warmth of her touch sent a shockwave of unfamiliar comfort straight through my chest. Could this actually be real? Could I truly find a family among the people who had terrified me the most?

“Nora mentioned you lost your phone yesterday during the chaos,” Luna Valerie continued, her hand squeezing mine one last time before she pulled back to her plate. “Kaidan will get you a new one tomorrow.”

The air in the dining room instantly dropped ten degrees.

“Why does it have to be me?” Kaidan spat before I could even process the Luna's words.

The venom in his voice was thick, raw, and instantaneous. He glared at me with pure, unadulterated disgust. But the moment the harsh words left his mouth, his breath hitched heavily in his throat.

A sharp wince contorted his handsome face. He gripped the edge of the mahogany table, his knuckles turning stark white under the chandelier light. He squeezed his eyes shut, his broad chest heaving as if an invisible, jagged blade had just been driven straight through his ribs.

I stared at him, my initial spike of fear melting into cold disdain. I remembered the heavy basketballs pelting my fragile body in the gym. I remembered his cruel, booming rejection in front of the cheering crowd. Last night was a fragmented blur of terror and pain, but I was absolutely certain he had done something to me in my sleep. Seeing him suffer brought me a twisted sense of satisfaction.

“Because you were the most vocal about rejecting her,” Luna Valerie said, her tone suddenly firm and unyielding, ignoring his grimace of pain. “The sooner you spend time with her, get to know her, and learn to tolerate her presence, the better it will be for the entire kingdom.”

Kaidan forced his eyes open. He turned his head to glare at me again, the alpha hatred burning bright and hot in his irises. But the moment his hostility flared toward me, another suppressed groan escaped his throat.

The physical agony was much more pronounced this time. His broad shoulders hunched forward, and a thin layer of sweat broke out on his forehead. The curse binding him to his mate was punishing him for his cruelty. The rest of the table shifted in unease, the metallic clinking of silverware coming to a dead halt.

“Are you alright?” the Luna asked, her stern authority vanishing into immediate maternal worry.

She pushed her chair back, stood up, and poured a tall glass of ice water. She slid it across the polished wood toward him. Kaidan reached for the glass. His large fingers trembled noticeably. The heavy crystal clinked against the table as he struggled to maintain a steady grip. He brought the rim to his lips, took a minuscule sip, and slammed it back down.

“Yeah,” he gritted out, his voice strained and hoarse. “I am fine. I am just a little bit tired. I think I should go to bed now. Goodnight.”

He shoved his heavy chair back and stood up, towering over the table. Luna Valerie walked him toward the grand double doors, her hand hovering near his back.

“Do you want me to brew you some herbal tea? It will help settle your nerves.”

“No, I am fine,” Kaidan replied. He turned to look down at his mother. For a split second, the monstrous, cruel alpha disappeared, replaced by an exhausted son craving comfort. “I just need to sleep.”

“Okay then. Take care of yourself, my boy.”

He disappeared into the dark hallway. A strange ache pinched my chest at their soft exchange. That unconditional motherly affection was something I would never experience again. The Luna returned to the table and took her seat with a soft sigh.

“One would think Kaidan is your only son,” Cyprian remarked dryly, leaning back in his chair. It was incredibly jarring to hear him speak with such casual, carefree ease. He usually looked like he wanted to execute someone on the spot.

“He is my firstborn. Do not start with your petty jealousy again, Cyprian.”

“Jealous? I am certainly not jealous.”

“Oh, please.”

They both chuckled, the tension in the room thawing slightly. I looked up from my plate of roasted meat and caught Ryker staring at me again. He did not flinch or look away when our eyes locked. He did not act like a man caught doing something inappropriate. Instead, his gaze deepened. He stared at me with an intense, burning focus that stole my breath and made my pulse hammer against my ribs. His dark eyes traced the slope of my neck, the curve of my jaw, and the flush rising in my cheeks. He looked at me as if he were committing every single detail of my face to memory.

The heavy, predatory scrutiny was unnerving. The dining room was air-conditioned, but the atmosphere grew suffocatingly hot. I shifted in my velvet chair, using my hand to discreetly fan my flushed face. Sitting under his calculating gaze felt like standing too close to an open fire. I wanted to run, to escape the heat, but leaving now would be a blatant insult to the Luna.

I endured the heavy silence, forcing myself to chew my food without tasting it. Finally, Luna Valerie wiped her mouth with a linen napkin and excused herself. Cyprian followed suit, standing up and disappearing like a ghost.

The moment they were gone, I bolted out of my chair.

“You look beautiful tonight.”

The deep, raspy voice stopped me dead in my tracks. I had barely taken three steps away from the dining table. Ryker materialized right behind me.

“I mean, you have always been beautiful,” Ryker continued, his tone smooth as velvet. “But the dress and the makeup really accentuate your features more.”

I have always been beautiful?

He walked around me, moving with the lazy grace of a predator cornering its prey. He leaned his broad right shoulder against the textured wallpaper, blocking my path to the door. His dark eyes roamed over me from head to toe, dripping with undisguised admiration. He slowly caught his lower lip between his teeth, keeping his gaze locked on mine. The simple, rugged motion made the room spin. My knees went weak, and a dizzying wave of heat rushed to my head.

“Your gown brings out the blueness of your eyes even more,” he murmured, his voice dropping an octave. “It is quite a beauty to look at.”

“Uhmm,” I stammered, my tongue glued to the roof of my mouth. “Thank you?”

The air crackled with thick, confusing tension. It was incredibly strange to stand here with Ryker and have him looking at me as if I were his favorite craving he had not tasted in years. This was Ryker Thorndrake. An alpha prince. And, more importantly, Sienna’s boyfriend.

My stomach dropped into my shoes. I had completely pushed that crucial detail out of my mind. Ryker belonged to Sienna. If she ever found out we now shared this complicated mate bond, she would skin me alive. She already hated my guts. I could already see the rest of my school years unfolding in a fiery hellscape.

She would kill me.

“What happened between you and Kaidan?” Ryker asked suddenly, cutting through my spiraling panic.

“What?”

“What happened between you and Kaidan? Your attack on him was quite volatile, and I am sure something must have happened to trigger it.”

My hand flew to my neck on instinct, shielding the spot where Kaidan had gripped me in the dark. Ryker tracked the defensive movement, his eyes narrowing into dangerous slits.

He stepped into my personal space, towering over me. His large, warm hand reached up, gently but firmly pulling my fingers away from my throat. He tilted his head, his eyes scanning my bare skin for bruises while I held my breath. His proximity was intoxicating, smelling of cedar and expensive cologne.

“Did he hurt you?” Ryker asked. His tone was dangerously quiet now.

“No,” I lied, my voice shaking slightly. “I just… it was a dream. It just felt too real that it made me lose all my sense of reasoning. I should not have attacked him like that.”

He gave a slow nod, but his tight jaw showed he did not buy a single word of it.

“Okay then. It is going to be difficult, but you will get used to us, to the Royal Keep, and everything else.”

“But you have a girlfriend,” I blurted out without thinking.

The words escaped before I could swallow them. I mentally berated myself as the atmosphere shattered. Ryker’s expression hardened instantly. The warmth in his eyes vanished, replaced by a cold, impenetrable wall. He dropped my hand and took a large step back, putting a canyon of physical and emotional distance between us.

“You should not concern yourself with that, Princess,” he said, his voice stripped of all prior affection. “Goodnight. Try not to have another nightmare.”

He turned on his heel and strode out of the room. He left me standing alone in the vast dining hall, mentally kicking myself for driving away the only brother who had bothered to extend a hand of friendship.

Despite the churning anxiety in my gut, sheer exhaustion dragged me into a deep, dreamless sleep. I woke the next morning to the sound of soft knocks on my bedroom door.

I pulled the heavy door open. Nora stood in the hallway, balancing two packages in her arms.

“Good morning. I was asked to deliver this to you.”

I was about to ask her who sent it when I recognized the smaller box on top. It was a brand-new iPhone, the most recent model on the market. Kaidan. Of course. He could not bear the thought of going to a store with me, so he just threw royal money at the problem. Fine by me. I had zero desire to share a breathing space with him anyway.

“Thank you,” I said, taking the phone box from her grasp. That was when I noticed the second, much larger package wrapped in crisp garment bags. “Is that for me? What is it?”

“Your new school uniform and other accessories.”

Of course. I would get a new school uniform to match my new status. I thanked Nora, took the heavy package, and dropped it on my mattress. I did not bother checking it right away because I got busy setting up the new phone. Whoever handled the purchase had already retrieved my SIM card data. One of the many perks of being an alpha prince. All my text threads were wiped clean, and Keira was offline. I typed out a quick message asking her to call me the second she was free.

Boredom set in a few hours later. I glanced at the garment bag resting on the duvet. My old uniform was perfectly fine, but returning to school meant facing the relentless gossip mill. I had to look brand new. I grabbed the zipper and tore the nylon cover open.

A shocked scream left my mouth the second I saw the fabric.

It was a Lunaris Academy uniform, alright. But it was nothing like the drab, scratchy clothing I had worn for years. It was not the uniform that belonged to the Dust-born tier. It was the uniform worn by the most revered, untouchable, and richest students in the entire academy.

It was the uniform for the Crown-born.

I gasped, my hands shaking as I turned the heavy blazer over and over. The material was woven from pure gold and pristine white thread, a stark contrast to the faded brown and white I had always worn. The fabric felt entirely different too. It was thick, luxurious, and heavy with undeniable prestige.

I stripped off my casual clothes and tried it on. I pulled on the crisp white shirt, the pleated gold-accented skirt, the pop socks, the custom backpad, and the polished leather shoes. I fastened the customized blazer and turned to face the gilded mirror.

I was blown away by the girl staring back at me. She was me, but she did not look anything like the lousy, desperate human girl scraping by on a charity scholarship. She looked powerful. She looked like the kind of student the rest of Lunaris Academy would gather around and admire in pure awe. I traced the golden crest stitched over my heart.

I was that student now.

Come Monday, I was not going to hide in the shadows of the lower levels. I was going straight up to the fourth floor.

Come Monday, I would be a Crown-born.