Chapter 1

It was the day of her parent's funeral, the rain poured down from the sky. No one's eyes were dry as the minister delivered his eulogy. Standing right beside Rebecca was her lady-in-waiting Emily and her little brother Percy squeezed her hand tightly. "I miss Mama and papa" he whispered, as Rebecca clasped him tight.

"So do I little one," she whispered while rubbing his back as he began to sob softly.

Standing across from her was the Duke of Sodor, Spencer. As he remained the only familiar face amongst the crowd. When the funeral concluded, the princess said her final goodbyes before escorting Percy back to the castle.

Spencer observed her every move, as he fixed up his hair. Now was his chance to court the princess without any disruptions. The duke grabbed a handful of lilies and came up to the princess.

"My sincerest condolences, princess," he said, extending the flowers to Rebecca while Emily sneered at the gesture.

"Oh…thank you, Spencer," she replied, while happily acceptingly the yellow and white flowers.

"If there is anything that I can do, please don't be afraid to ask."

"Of course Spencer, but I must be on my way," she replied, as Percy began to yawn.

The silver-haired man looked down at the boy and sneered, before watching the princess walk away. "With your parents gone, you will be mine Rebecca," he whispered before heading off to his own horse but stopped when he saw a familiar-looking carriage approaching in the distance.

"What is he doing here?" He muttered while watching the royal carriage drive up to the castle.

~later that day~

Percy was napping in his room, while Rebecca changed out of her funeral clothing and into a dress of more vibrant colours. Emily helped with her hair, as today they were expecting a visit from the Crowned Prince of Sodor.

"I can't imagine how you must feel right now," She muttered, as Rebecca sighed feeling nervous.

"Trust me, I feel like the butterflies in my stomach won't rest."

"Just remember to breathe and be friendly," Emily assured, as the princess applied some light makeup.

"What if I make a fool out of myself in front of the Prince? He has such a higher rank than me," she whispered, as Emily applied some sweet perfume to the princess.

"Nonsense! You two will hit it off just fine."

"But this is a Prince! I've never talked to a man with a higher title before," she said, feeling even more nervous than before.

"Well, Spencer holds the title of Duke. And you have had to deal with his nonsense" Emily huffed, as Rebecca noticed and knew she was talking about his pompous behaviour "but give the prince a chance, who knows? For all one knows the two of you will make the loveliest imperial couple the world has ever seen?"

The girl pondered for a moment and then let out a deep sigh as she glanced down at the miniature portrait of the prince. It depicted a serious-looking young man, with downcast eyes, a strong nose and chin. Indeed, he was a handsome man, but she had no clue how serious he was. Suddenly a knock came at the door as Emily rushed over to answer it.

"Who is it?" She asked as the duke of Sodor announced himself. But Emily did not think that right now was an appropriate time for guests.

"I'm sorry, but the princess is busy and has important matters to attend to, please come back at another time," she said, but Spencer was not going to have any of it. Without warning, he forced Emily aside and walked right into the room. "I am a Duke! I can do as I please," he whispered under his breath, but Emily heard every word.

"Your grace you can't just barge in like that!" Emily snapped while fixing herself up but Spencer did not have any intention of apologizing to a lowly lady.

Rebecca was not impressed by his actions, but she could absolutely need a friend to talk to "Spencer, What brings you here?"She asked as he eyed her up.

"I've come to offer you comfort in your time of need, dear princess," he said while extending his hand to hers.

"Thank you, I have an important guest coming, and I feel so nervous" she spoke, as she rushed to help Emily up.

"And just how important are we dealing with here?" He chuckled, as he came up behind the princess and wrapped his arms around her.

The girl immediately became relaxed and embarrassed as Emily huffed at Spencer's lewd actions. He promptly secured his hands around Rebecca's waist and pulled her close to his chest. "In addition, I heard that the prince of Sodor was coming to see you?" He purred into her ear.

"By all means…he is," she corrected politely, feeling flustered, but the hug felt good.

'Please not today! And right in front of Emily!'She mentally cried as Spencer tried to be cute.

"Why didn't you inform me? After all, he is my cousin," he said, as his lips came closer to her ear. This caused the princess to shiver as she didn't want to put up with his nosy behaviour.

"I had too much to deal with this week and just forgot!" she blurted out, as Emily took notice of the anxiety in her voice.

"Sir it is time you left! My lady must get going," Emily merely demanded, as the man glared suspiciously at her.

"Well, I merely wanted to advise you that the prince can be rather pompous, cold and pretentious. And he can undoubtedly lose his temper, best not to keep him waiting" The duke kissed Rebecca's hand before leaving the room. The second the door closed and Emily sighed in short-lived relief, Rebecca felt even more nervous than ever. Considering that Spencer was never wrong about these things.

"That horrid man! I'm sure thrilled your father rejected his absurd proposal to wed you" Emily retorted bitterly, as Rebecca sighed out of overwhelming despair. 'Or did my father make a mistake instead?' She thought mournfully, before shifting her anxious attention to the rain-covered window.