9. NINE #2
Mother always scolded me for drooling on a family heirloom, her sculpted black brows arched in silent reprimand. Kind of how they are now.
“Helping your sister will be difficult when you’re not ready yourself,” Mother scolds.
Wrapped in a gauzy, white tunic dress with silver bangles securing the fabric to her throat and hands, Mother looks every bit the spirit of the moon that will bless the procession.
I flash her a sheepish grin. “What if I told you I was practicing my flaming arrows for the afterparty?”
“I’d say you’re full of it,” Astrella cuts in, laughing at my glare. “You don’t need practice.”
Astrella chose a verdant silk skirt set that matches the gold and emerald hairpiece draped over her braids.
The gems sparkle as they dangle over her book—the one accessory she never leaves behind.
Tonight, it will have to remain here, though I’m sure she will escape at the earliest chance to return to it.
She prefers the company of her own mind.
I walk over to the far wall and admire the array of outfits on display. Polished bronze poles hold up dresses, wraps, skirt and pant sets of every hue.
I finger the lavender two-piece closest to me, enjoying the sensation of the cool silk pants. Perfect to combat the summer heat and crowds tonight. The long-sleeve top is exquisitely beaded with amethyst; the edges woven with silver.
Fareena walks over to the ensemble, pulling it from my grasp and laying it flush against her chest. She admires herself in front of the mirror before shooting me a wicked smile. I feign disinterest and examine a rose-colored dress to my left instead.
She shrugs at Mother. “Having someone to get ready with is just as fun. As for what I’ll wear, I think…” She pauses until she has everyone’s attention. “I’ll wear the gold.”
I greedily grab the lavender piece, squeezing her hand in the process. “Thank you,” I whisper.
“Of course, Mimi.” She winks and turns to get dressed.
Today is her special night, and any wish will be granted without hesitation. Mother forbids any sisterly squabbles, especially over clothes. If she wanted the lavender, it would have been hers.
Fareena is far more suited to the gold dress anyway. The fabric is breathable and nearly see-through, shimmering with real gold woven into each silk strand. A dazzling piece that will draw every eye. Perfect for a queen and comfortable enough to withstand the revels that will follow the ceremony.
Maybe later I can enjoy the celebration, but for now my chest tightens as I mourn the easy laughter and smiles between us.
No longer can I chase my elder sisters through the halls or sneak into their rooms for late-night stories.
They are still my blood and will always be here, but I know Kalisham comes first.
We are Ardeshirs, and we carry the hope of our people.
Sensing my thoughts, Astrella pulls me down to sit beside her on the blue velvet cushions stacked in the center of the room. She tucks me into a side hug, pressing our foreheads together.
“Mina…” She breathes my name like a sigh. “Our bond is not so shakable that a few new duties will take us away from you. Must you be so dramatic?”
Tears prick at the black kohl I just applied around my eyes. Mother comes to perch on the other side of me, my wall of security. “Shh. Darling Mina. Your time will come soon enough. A few more years and you’ll be an adviser along with your sister. Until then, you will serve and learn from many.”
Of course, Mother thinks I’m worried about my station, mistaking my heartbreak for ambition.
“Who said I was naming any of you advisers?” Fareena teases from the corner. She holds up gold hoop earrings and admires them in the mirror.
Astrella rolls her eyes. She and Fareena are only a year apart and inseparable, but even if they weren’t, Astrella’s talent makes her our most valued historian.
She can perfectly recite any text or conversation, a walking memoir and oracle of the past. Her mind has always been her priority, sharp as any of my blades.
Garsif hasn’t discovered all his talents yet, but his proclivity for moving around undetected promises a bright future as a leader of the shadows, our network of spies. Both will make valuable and necessary advisers.
Our royal education is vast—from combat to history and the common languages of surrounding nations, and everything in between.
My mastery with a bow and blade surpasses even Mother’s.
My mock battles end in victory with minimal casualties every time, and I’m not above a dirty trick or two if it means winning.
On paper, my accomplishments are great, but what use is a goddess of war in an impenetrable queendom’s era of peace?
I have never witnessed a real war or wound outside of accidents.
While nations rise and fall across the waters, Kalisham prospers.
Invaders never survive the ever-changing dunes that surround us, and even if they find a way through the Draconos Pass, a violent convergence of two seas in an unrelenting battle, they will never be able to climb the monstrous cliffs that guard the northern edge.
Only one army has ever come close to the border villages, and they were wiped out by a sandstorm. Any survivors doomed to dehydration and burnt flesh.
My accolades are of no use to Fareena. A small part of me is grateful, though. Perhaps I will be able to find a duty outside of my station, like teaching the next generation of soldiers or joining a naval patrol.
“Well…?” Fareena asks, staging herself in front of us with a twirl.
She looks absolutely radiant, a sun goddess to replace the moon. She joins us on the pillows, and I snuggle further into the embrace of my family. I breathe in the mix of their warm floral scents, allowing peace to find me.
Garsif comes flying into the room. A blur of indigo that breaks up our tender moment with a wild shout. “Father told me to tell you the sun has gone to bed and the stars have awoken.”
The time for the ceremony is nearly upon us. I grab Garsif, pulling him onto my lap. “You seem rather large for a messenger bird.” I tickle his sides and pepper his cheeks with kisses. “No feathers either. What a peculiar creature.”
Mother rises and straightens her dress, while Astrella joins me in examining Garsif. Laughter warms the room as Fareena stands as well, taking Mother’s hands. A seriousness settles over them.
“A moment with your sister, please,” Mother commands with a gentle smile.
We shuffle outside, leaving queens to their business. I tuck Garsif under my arm, carrying him like a sack after his insistence to stay. We join Father on the steps of the palace where thousands gather below to secure a good view of the ceremony. The wrinkles in his face deepen as he smiles at us.
“Best behavior, my prince,” he says, adjusting Garsif’s matching robe after I set him down. Rising to greet us, he pulls Astrella and me into a long embrace. “The stars dim in comparison to your beauty.”
“Then they should darken entirely when they see Fareena,” I reply, kissing the sculpted beard on his cheek.
“And Queen Estere, no doubt,” the Master of Shadows adds, stepping out from an alabaster pillar behind Father. He kisses each of our hands, his acid lips lingering a moment too long on mine. I swallow the urge to wipe it off on my pants. “Lovely to see you, Princess Mina.”
Never before has a person fit the title so perfectly.
Under the light of the full moon, his unassuming dark locks reflect a younger man, close to thirty.
But under another light, another night, he could transform in age and stature.
A spymaster and master spy all in one. No one other than the queen even knows his real name.
We simply refer to him as Zala, the shadow.
My stomach sours, unsettling any time he materializes in my presence.
His gaze travels the length of my outfit before he slithers on to greet the other advisers gathered on the steps to our right.
They stand in two neat rows, each step holding two members, a total of twelve from every province of Kalisham.
They wear matching white linen tunics, a living blank slate for the new queen to confirm or replace as needed. Fresh advisers are trained by the old but bring the newest generation’s ideas and concerns to the forefront, adding to the cycle of peace and prosperity.
Father takes my hand and tucks it into the fold of his arm, patting it twice. “It would seem time away did not extinguish Zala’s flame for you,” he whispers.
“And it would seem his time away did not ignite mine.” My eyes narrow as Father breaks out into a soft laugh. I lean into his side, trying and failing to hide my smile. Father knows I have no desire to find a partner anytime soon, let alone that particular man. I shiver despite the deafening heat.
“And that, my Mina, is why you are my favorite.”
“Shh. Papa. You aren’t supposed to have a favorite.”
I laugh as Astrella feigns a hurt pout before returning her attention back to Garsif. She and Fareena are closest to Mother, and Garsif and I to Father, but we are deeply loved by both.
My family is the one place I truly feel peace. I have little in the way of friends outside of the palace walls, but I’ve never felt lonely.
The gentle hum of pipes and lutes float toward us as the court musicians signal the start of the procession.
The evenly spaced guards, adorned in their brown leather armor and azure sashes, straighten. The crowd, packed shoulder to shoulder and filling every street and rooftop, quiets as a summoned cool breeze brings a wave of comfort.
All heads turn toward the top of the white stairs. In a procession, young girls walk forward, sprinkling jasmine petals on the alabaster steps before exiting between the dual pillars that mark the entrance to the palace.