Corina Nightshade brushed through her luscious, waist-length blonde hair as she sat on the cushioned vanity seat in her bedchamber.

Her father had just returned home from delegations as the kingdom of Crystalia's king. 

News had spread a deal had been made that would end the war. Finally, the kingdom would be at peace again after a decade of war with the rival nation of Luminairea.

After brushing her hair, she hummed as she exited her chambers. A knight guarding the dazzling, red-carpeted hall, bowed to her as she hurried to the private dining room.

Excitement flowed through her dainty body as she entered the room. 

"Father!" She cried out as she ran to his seat, tripping over the hem of her blue dress as she fell into a loving embrace with the king.

King Gerald Nightshade gently stroked the back of her head as she hugged him tight. "My daughter. It's pleasing to see you so lively this morning."

Amelia Nightshade, the Queen, smiled as she watched Corina embrace her father. She wore her blonde hair in a tidy bun atop her head, her crown sparkling with the royal crystals harvested from the kingdom's prized crystal mines.

"Have a seat, dear," Gerald instructed his daughter.

Corina pulled away and nodded with a wide smile across her face as she took a seat, her hands folded in her lap. She looked around the room. "Where are my brothers?" 

"My dear girl, I called for only you this morning as I have important news," the king replied.

As she narrowed her blue eyes, Corina looked at her father in confusion. She wondered what news would involve her and not her nine brothers, especially the six oldest who had become commanders of units in the royal army. 

The queen was just as confused as her daughter, but she had a vague idea of what it involved. The idea did not please Amelia, who had worked hard to bring up her dear daughter. 

"Corina, as you know, the war is over, but there is a condition," Gerald began. "The king of Luminairea recently appointed his second son to be Duke of one of the grandest cities. The Duke lacks experience, especially when it comes to finding a woman to assist him with his duties."

Corina tilted her head and clutched her dress's fabric against her knees. "What's it got to do with me, papa?"

"For peace, the agreement involves a marriage," the king continued. "Corina, you, as my only daughter, will marry Duke Alexander Frostbloom."

Corina's eyes widened at the news. She was barely of age and never dreamed of marrying a man, especially from a rival kingdom, which had caused so much bloodshed to the citizens of her own kingdom. 

Her life was perfect the way it was—she had whatever she desired. She enjoyed studying and spending time with her mother and older brothers. It was beyond her expectations, yet it appeared her life was about to unravel.

"F-Father," Corina stammered. "If I marry the Duke, the war ends? Is there really no other agreement that could have been arranged?"

"No," the king said, then gave his daughter a gentle smile. "It's the perfect way to unify the two kingdoms, don't you think, Amelia?"

Amelia looked down to her lap. She looked as if she would begin to shed tears. Her girl, would be torn away from her. Her beautiful, loving, sweet little girl...

The girl was, in fact, a boy.

The Queen had given birth to nine boys by the time she became pregnant with Corina. She had wished all her life to have a daughter of her own. 

When the child was born, she had a tenth boy. She kept the gender of the baby a secret from everyone, except the lady-in-waiting who had assisted her during the birth and a single one of her sons, who learned the truth by accident.

Not even the king knew he had a tenth son born. 

Instead of raising the child as a boy, she kept him sheltered and unaware of the physical differences between boys and girls. She dressed Corina in the most gorgeous fabrics, taught her feminine manners and traditions, and instilled in her the belief that she was a beautiful princess.

Corina was petite, unusually small for a boy's stature. Her lean diet and the fact that she was the tenth child both contributed to her petite stature. She was born about a month early and has been small since birth.

Queen Amelia's secret would be something she would take to the grave. Now that Corina was about to get married, it seemed inevitable that the secret would leak. The Duke would see her naked and discover she was a man!

Amelia took a deep breath. Instead of explaining herself, she crossed her fingers and hoped the Duke would have no sexual interest in her daughter. 

With a nervous smile, the Queen turned her gaze to Gerald. She nodded her head and decided she would never tell her husband. She couldn't! If she were to get executed for passing her youngest son off as a princess, then so be it. She could never work up the courage to reveal the lie.

"Yes, honey," the queen nervously whispered. "But I wish we could keep dear Corina here with us."

The king shook his head and placed a hand over the queen's. "I understand you love our girl, but Corina is old enough now. She's gorgeous and would make a lovely wife."

Corina puffed out her cheeks. She looked between her mother and father and shrugged. As she thought more about it, the idea had started to become exciting. 

"Is the Duke handsome?" Corina inquired, her eyes lighting up with excitement. 

"He is," the king laughed.

"Wonderful!" Corina replied, clasping her hands together. "I have dreamed of staying here with Mama, but this may be a fun adventure."

Amelia sighed. Her child had always been very rebellious. Of course she would think of marriage as an adventure.

"I want to visit Luminairea!" Corina spoke with a huge grin.

The king sighed with relief, "I'm glad you're getting excited about it. I was worried by your initial reaction."

Corina shook her head. "It sounds fun."

The king chuckled. "I should have known you would think such a thing was fun."

"When do I get to visit?" Corina asked her father.

"As soon as possible," the king began. "Ideally, you would leave tomorrow morning."

"So soon?" Amelia gasped.

She couldn't believe her daughter would be leaving on such short notice. She knew the tradition was for the bride-to-be to move into the palace of her betrothal to plan the wedding and spend time with another person, but everything was moving at a dizzying pace.

Amelia thought to herself she wouldn't be so shocked if her daughter were actually physically a girl.

True, she looked as pretty as any princess from a fairytale, but it was a facade only she was aware of.

"Yes," the king nodded. "Corina has never met Alexander. It's important they have time to get to know one another."

Corina nodded. "I think it's fine."

"Corina, are you sure?" Amelia inquired, looking down at her lap again.

"Yes," Corina replied. "I see nothing wrong with it. It's not like I can't come and visit anytime, right?"

"Right," the queen sighed.

"Yes, that's right," Gerald grinned. "You and Alexander are always welcome to visit!"

"I need to tell my brothers!"

"We'll have a celebration meal this evening," Gerald said. "It's big news."

"Great!" Corina clapped. "I hope there's cake!"

Amelia scoffed. "Corina, that's fattening. You know you shouldn't eat those types of foods."

Corina frowned.

"My dear, let her eat whatever she likes for once," Gerald said as he looked at the princess. "It's a special day."

The three had a nice, light breakfast. After it was finished, she hugged both of her parents and then returned to her bedchambers. She sprawled out on her bed and closed her eyes.

She spent hours thinking about things. While she used to not ever want to leave her mother, the idea of starting a new life with a handsome Duke sounded exciting.

Corina was clueless. She had no idea she wasn't biologically a girl. The queen had never taught her about sex or about the anatomical differences between men and women.

Raised as a young girl, she didn't need to learn about those things. She wasn't a girl, and if she were, she would be considered a pure, innocent flower who didn't know about anything.

She was unaware that her mother had hidden her gender from the king. Amelia had never told anyone, even her daughter, that she was born male.

She was unaware that she had male privates, but Amelia had taught her not to look below the waist. She hadn't been taught about the male genitalia. She had never seen her mother. She had no idea what one looked like.

Would Corina be able to thrive married to another man while presenting as a princess?