Sun woke Ursa as the sun crested the horizon, and led her, sleepily, into the steaming bathroom. The petals of seven different flowers floated on the water. All five of her ladies were in attendance; one with a sponge, one with a comb, one with three different soaps, one with lotions and ointments, and one with fresh towels and a silk robe. Sun undressed her, then ran her fingers through Ursa's hair to remove any large tangles before helping her into the tub. The room was heavily fragrant, and Ursa slipped down until the water was just under her chin.
The maid who'd been put in charge of her hair stood behind her and combed, then massaged Ursa's scalp before working in an oil that smelled like lilac blossoms. The maid with the soaps lathered them in the fragrant water, and one by one, they were applied to her skin, worked in, then rinsed off. Her hair was rinsed, then oiled, then rinsed again and combed. Sun helped Ursa step out of the tub, and into another that contained plain water. She stood as her hair was wrapped into a tight bun to keep it out of the water, and in the tub of plain water, she was thoroughly scrubbed with a natural sponge until her skin was pink. The final maid was waiting with soft towels of fluffy koalasheep fur, and when she was dry from head to toe, her maid with the lotions and ointments came and rubbed her down. By the time the robe was tied around her waist, she smelled like a spring garden after a summer rain in Kirachu City. She smelled like home.
In the bedroom proper, her mother was waiting for her. She draped the veil over Ursa's head, the veil covering her like a shroud, as a servant helped her step into her slippers. When she was clothed, Qiao led the procession from Ursa's room to a small impromptu dining room, were female servants were in attendance. As was the tradition in Kirachu, only the women were to be around her during the wedding preparation, and most of the ritual was conducted in silence.
A spread of one hundred dishes was laid out on the table. Ursa sat at the head, in the place of power, Qiao to her right, Sun to her left. Qiao and Sun rolled the veil to her shoulders, and Ursa dipped her head so it hung away from her face. She would not eat her first meal without it until she was married. The servants and her ladies sat along the table, ready to pass the tiny dishes as Qiao called them out.
"Bamboo hearts, for the strength you will need on this day and for the rest of your life," Qiao said, and the dish was handed to Ursa. Delicately, with gleaming ivory chopsticks, she picked the steamed leafy mass from the dish offered her, chewed, and swallowed.
"Braised beef, for the power that is now yours as a princess of our nation."
"Sweet sesame buns, for the sweet nature of your personality. Spicy pepper sauce for the fire that lies underneath."
It was not uncommon in Kirachu for the mother to customize the spread to her daughter and the occasion. One by one, Ursa ate each dish that was handed to her, prepared to be only one bite, so that by the end she would have eaten one hundred bites.
"Dragonheart, sometimes called the maidenhead, for that which you will lose tonight."
"Sweet and spicy possum chicken, for fertility, and that your children may have your personality as well as your husband's."
The last dish, Qiao handed to Ursa herself. "Lotus lily, to remind you of your home, to remind you that you will always be a daughter of Kirachu, and that our women are the strongest in this nation."
Ursa bowed deeply to her mother before accepting the flower and savoring its flavor in her mouth. She was surprised to find that it had a rich, savory flavor, not bitter like many of the other lotus lilies she'd eaten. Ceremony dictated that the only words spoken were those of the mother as she called out the dishes, but Ursa hoped her mother would understand the question. When she swallowed the flower, Qiao only bowed low to her daughter before standing.
From the dining room, Ursa was taken to another room that had been arranged as a shrine to the spirits and her ancestors. She was shielded on all sides by women, who blotted out even her shrouded form from curious eyes. Incense was burning all through the room, and when she knelt in front of the altar, tucking her robe under her knees, she lit two more sticks. The room was heavy with sweet smelling smoke, and she made her offerings and asked for forgiveness for wrongs and peace for the future quickly. She would not let the smell of the smoke seep into the delicate fabric of the veil.
When they left the altar, bells were ringing in the Fire Sages Temple; it was already mid-morning. Her procession headed back to her room, and on the way, they passed Iroh and Ozai, who only looked at the mass of women in puzzlement. Ursa smiled to herself. She'd heard some of the servants whisper that not even Crown Princess Jian had commanded this much ceremony during her wedding. This was the way they did things in Kirachu, and Qiao had been determined that her daughter be married as such.
Her bedroom was blessed by the women surrounding her, with Sun saying the words. They asked the spirits that many children be conceived here. Ozai's room, where they would spend the night, would be blessed later, right before they entered. After the blessing, all but Sun, her five ladies, and her mother exited. Now was time to put on her dress.
They started with her underclothes. She would no longer wear the bindings of a young girl, but the complicated and often alluring underwear of a wife. Qiao stood Ursa in front of a full length mirror, and untied her robe. Sun was behind her, pulling it off her shoulders and folding it on the bed. One of her ladies knelt at her feet and removed the slippers.
"Look at your body, and never be ashamed of it, little flower," Qiao said. She pulled Ursa's hair behind her back. "If you are ashamed, then so must be your husband. When all else fails, here is your power over him. Make him want you and desire you, so that when you deny him the mere pleasure of looking at you, he will crawl to you on his stomach like the lowest of beasts."
She was helped, first, into the bottoms, a fine muslin fabric dyed pure black with bright gold dragon embroidery. It caressed her legs as it was pulled up to her hips. Ursa ran her hands over the fabric and smiled. If she got to wear things like this for the rest of her life, she'd be a happy woman. It was so soft that it almost wasn't there. Qiao smiled at her daughter.
Next, was the top piece, which would support her breasts.
"You are lucky, my lady, that you do not need a middle section that pinches and pushes you into flattering silhouettes," Sun said. This caused her ladies to giggle, and with that, conversation flowed freely among the women. This was the time when older women who'd been married for years counseled the younger on the ways of a proper wife.
Ursa helped Qiao fit the matching black muslin over her chest; the straps were fitted over her sholders, and the whole thing tied in the back. The women were loud and relaxed, and spoke so openly about Ursa's wedding night, that she blushed all the way to her shoulders.
"Oh, my lady, he will love that color on you!"
"I hope he makes you blush like that."
"He's so handsome and strong."
"I hope he knows what to do with it…"
Together, her new underwear gave the impression that a dragon was crawling around her body, the straps on her shoulders pure perfection of needlework, like the claws of a dragon. Ursa noted with much embarrassment that the dragon originated from her crotch. She blushed again, but Qiao only stroked her hair.
"It shows that you will give birth to dragons, little flower."
"We see the way he looks as you during dinner, my lady," Sun said, combing through Ursa's hair again. "If my lady will sit." Sun gestured to the bench in front of the vanity. Having her hair put into the proper style would take longer than putting on her dress.
Qiao and the ladies watched as Sun's hands moved expertly through Ursa's hair. This was not a gentle process.
"This will prepare you for the pain tonight," Sun said when Ursa started wincing. Ursa had become used to such sayings, though they filled her with nothing but dread at the idea. She wished that Na could be with her.
For the next few hours, Sun worked on Ursa's hair. Half was pulled on top of her head, and secured with braided black, red, and gold ribbons. Sun knotted and looped, using plain black pins that would be hidden. She twisted and braided, until Ursa's hair resembled a massive, intricate, and glistening knot. She took two sections of the hair that hung down her back and braided them with threads of onyx and yellow sapphire. Those she draped across Ursa's shoulders. The rest, she let hang.
Ursa's scalp was throbbing by the time Sun was done, and they hadn't even started the ornaments yet. Her ladies brought three boxes of them forward and sat them before Qiao on the vanity. The first piece was an orchid lily made of garnet and diamond petals with emerald leaves, all crafted on golden wire, which was placed in the center of the knot. A golden dragon of linked metal chains was draped across her hairline and pinned to the knot behind her ears. Separate pieces depicting the wings were placed in the top of the bun, fanning out and very nearly covering her hair. Her hair was only visible because the thin gold was worked in an intricate lace-like pattern of little cut out flames. The dragon's head was arranged so that when the crown was placed in her hair, it would look like the dragon was breathing fire. Ursa hoped it just didn't get lost in all the mess she had attached to her.
On the side of the knot were placed pins with dangling chains of onyx and garnet that stood away from her head and hung down to her shoulders. These pins were inserted and removed and rearranged four different times until Qioa was satisfied with their placement.
As Qiao had insisted, the makeup was simple. A little blush was applied to her cheeks, and her lips were painted a deep red that would match the color of her dress. Her eyebrows were darkened, and a liner applied to help her eyes stand out.
Already, Ursa was feeling the weight in her neck, but she couldn't deny the overall effect when her mother was done. She stood in front of the mirror and admired herself.
"And so a dragon blooms from the flower," Qiao said, motioning for the first layer of the dress to be brought to her.
Ursa slipped her arms into the holes in the pale golden sleeveless robe. It was held closed by two small buttons. The next layer was a sheer red chiffon robe, trimmed and with dragons embroidered in gold. It had been tailored to her, and sat flush against her body, held by a narrow band of gold fabric, embroidered this time with several different kinds of lilies in a silver thread. There would be no uncomfortable bunching, but the wide sleeves extended six inches beyond her hands, and the excess fabric at the bottom would form the main part of the train that would flow behind her. If she walked properly, her leg would peek through the parted layers from the knee down, offering the only piece of skin she would show.
"If you wish," Qiao said, "you may appear to your husband in this, tonight. We'll remove your under robe, so it's just this and your undergarments."
Ursa stood in front of the mirror and thought for a while. All the answer Qiao needed was a smile on her daughter's face. The third layer was brought, a solid red robe of linen with sleeves that stopped at her wrist, but a train equally as long as the chiffon layer. It took some time for the ladies to decide just how the chiffon sleeves should drape through the linen sleeves, and Ursa was made to stand with her arms outstretched the entire time. They finally decided on a pleasing arrangement, one to draw attention to the band of gold on the linen sleeves, and its red embroidered lily leaves. This was tied with a gold sash matching the linen sleeves. They adjusted the collar so that it reached all the way up to her chin, with very little of her neck showing.
Much to Ursa's delight, the final layer was brought over. This was Ursa's favorite layer. Again, a red linen, but trimmed with a deeper gold. It was sleeveless so that her linen and chiffon sleeves were visible, and the shoulders were done in the pointed style, with two layers denoting her social rank. It was a hassle to get it on, though, because it had to be lowered over her massive hair and ornaments. Since it was split to the waist, they were able to open it pretty wide, but there was still a lot of maneuvering to be done. Sun spread the shoulders further apart before cinching it tightly around her waist with a thick belt that sat under her bust, and was tied like an obi above her butt. The gold belt added another layer to the train. Down the front draped a large panel of gold linen, over which a smaller panel of red linen was sown. The red panel contained a massive gold embroidered dragon breathing gold embroidered fire.
So many dragons and so much red, but Ursa couldn't deny that she looked like a queen. The dress lacked the sparkle of her hair and its ornaments.
"That's to draw attention to your face, little flower," Qiao said when Ursa asked.
The only thing that sparkled that was added to the dress were three belts of heavy gold draped around her waist. The first contained a large flower, which was placed over her own "flower," causing Ursa to blush as red as her dress. The other belts were linked panels of gold, studded with rubies at intervals. Finally, finally, she was done.
Right on schedule, the bells rang from the Fire Sages Temple, signaling the start of the wedding.
A/N: So, aside from just wanting to go into detail about the wedding preparations of Kirachu, I hope it was clear what I was trying to do. I wanted to use this chapter (and part of next chapter) to show the wealth and power of her island. I also imagine that some traditions could be different between the islands. It's not clear how connected the islands are, but it's not entirely out of the question. I should also put up a link to the reference pic I used for Ursa's wedding dress... Check my profile if you want to see it.
